Dead Eyes
by iloveneji44
Summary: Sasuke's team has voluntarily returned to Konoha leaving Sakura in a whirlwind of emotion. With her thoughts distracted, an old friend who has stood silently watching her all those years is forced to reveal his feelings in the face of rivalry.
1. Chapter 1

_** DISCLAIMER - I do not known Naruto nor any of the characters in it... blah, blah, blah..._

_** Author's note - This story takes place shortly after Sasuke joins with Madara. I don't read the manga and only watch the anime, so if there's any discrepancies between now and the future, please ignore it in the spirit of storytelling... BTW, this story is rated M for MATURE, i.e. 18+. If you are mentally not familiar with the birds and the bees, I ask that you turn your tooshies around as I will not be responsible for explaining how babies are made, and I refuse to let your parents be angry with this site. If not, you may proceed at your own caution... - iloveneji44_

* * *

_Inspired by a true story..._

* * *

The hot summer sun came down with such a sweltering heat that the faces of the Hokages carved into the mountainside seemed to sweat as if they were alive. The dirt surfaces of Konoha's streets were radiating waves that threatened to cook any foot that dared to walk upon them for more than a minute. Though the rooftops of the marketplace reflected the sun back towards the sky, the roads that laid between them were still a battleground for the weak as the cicadas sang down to them their lamenting songs. Braving the summer's cruel touch, customers who had no choice but to make their daily rounds weaved in and out of the shade to avoid such untimely deaths.

The merchants that stood with towels draped around their necks tried hard to fight the sleepiness that was threatening to overtake them with exhaustion. Swaying in dreamlike states, they forced themselves to assist their customers but could barely recount as to how many had passed through. They wiped the sweat from their brows and drank from their water bottles as half of it spilled down their heated throats to cool their chests. Keeping to their stools as if it were a clutch, it was not until a figure floated silently by them that they perked their heads up to take in the strange happening.

Walking down the very center of the road was someone who didn't seem to care how hot it was, in fact, it didn't seem that she even noticed that the sun was hitting her at all. As people watched her pass, they could see that she was shinobi, but her clothes told them that she was off-duty. The boots that she wore were covered in a film of dirt as she marched through the dust, and her pink hair lay loosely upon her shoulders dipped in sweat. Looking at her in curiosity, they had no idea who could stand such a heat.

Sakura paid no attention to the onlookers as she continued on with her eyes on the ground. Her head seemed to be in a fog of her own thoughts as she picked through the events that caused her so much grief. When she finally hit the end of the road, she stopped to look left and right, not knowing which way she was going to go.

Sighing deeply, Sakura pulled her normally free-flowing hair into a ponytail before putting her hand up as a visor to see what lay down each path. After a short moment of deliberation she decided to go left.

"Sakura! Sakura!" she heard a familiar voice yelling to her from behind.

"Shoot," she whispered as she ignored the call and turned right instead.

"Sakura-chan!" yelled Naruto as he turned the corner. "Are? Where did she go?..."

Looking down the road, Naruto found that the only people gracing the area ahead of him were civilians going about their daily business. Scratching his head, he was pretty sure that he had just seen Sakura turning there.

"Oi! Naruto!" came a friendly shout before a slap hit him on the back.

"Ah, Kiba, what are you doing here?" asked Naruto.

"I'm here to pick up Akamaru's food," Kiba grinned as he patted Akamaru's back. "He eats a ton, so I make him carry the bags back as part of his training."

"Ah..." Naruto mumbled, looking back down the road to see where Sakura had gone.

"Uh, what are you doing?"

"I thought I saw Sakura-chan turn this way, but I don't see her."

"Well she's not down that way."

"Huh?"

"We just passed her back there. Uh, Naruto, it's a bad sign when women try to lose you..."

As Kiba chuckled to himself, he soon stopped once he saw that what should have been an angry look from Naruto, was instead a distant stare.

"I was only kidding," Kiba tilted his head in worry. "You okay? Is it the heat?"

"Why would she double-back?" Naruto asked himself, completely ignoring Kiba's question.

"Is everything alright?"

Waking out of his trance, Naruto finally noticed that Kiba was still there.

"Gomen... Sakura-chan has just been weird since we got back."

Kiba's happy features began to soften as his thoughts drifted back to two nights ago. He was walking down the street with Shino and Hinata when they had gotten the news.

_Did you hear?_ Chouji shouted as he ran past them. _Naruto's team has returned with Sasuke!_

Stunned at the news, everyone from Naruto's year had run to the front gates to see if it was true. Upon their arrival, silent smiles were waiting among the crowd as Tsunade stepped forward to extend her welcome to Sasuke and his new team.

Kiba stood behind the spectacle as he always did, separate from everyone else whenever he found himself in a crowd. However, as Tsunade began her talk, Kiba noticed that he wasn't the only one who decided to distance themselves from the fray.

Standing ten feet away from Kiba was Sakura. Her eyes were cast elsewhere as her facial expressions showed that she was disturbed. As his eyes lowered to her fists, he could see that they were tightened as if holding back something. He had wanted to ask if she was alright, but speaking at that moment would have drawn what he knew would have been unwanted attention.

As soon as Tsunade gave her dismissal, Kiba watched as Sakura then turned inconspicuously away from the crowd and make her way silently down the street. At a loss as to what to say, Kiba stared after her until she disappeared around the nearest corner.

_You can tell how sad someone is by the way they look from behind, _Kiba remembered Kakashi saying as he came up beside him._ It's probably best to just leave her alone, for now._

Kiba's heart ached when he thought of how Sakura must have been feeling. After all, they all knew she was in love with Sasuke before he had left, and she and Naruto had worked so hard to bring him back. For all he knew, she probably didn't expect it to be like this.

"Did she mention anything?" Kiba asked Naruto as he pulled himself back into the present.

"No... but I'm going to find out right now."

* * *

A soft warm breeze whispered through Sakura's hair as she walked slowly up the cliff's stairway behind the Hokage's office. With her hands in her pockets, her feet were like drones that rhythmically tapped without a misstep. When she had reached the mid-landing she felt compelled to turn around and face the images of the Hokages carved into the mountainside. One by one she traced their features over with her eyes until they finally landed upon the most familiar.

The curves of Tsunade's stone face were a testament of her knowledge and experience. Even the soullessness of her eyes seemed to speak volumes of what her shishou had endured, the coldness of war and its neverending tide of despair. To have lived through it all was such a great feat for someone of her age, and Sakura in a way envied that the same had not happened to her.

It was true that nobody liked war and what it did to everyone around them, but somehow Sakura found herself longing to be pushed to the limit, to see what she was truly made of, and to experience these things that could only make her tougher in the world that she lived in. In fact, Sakura envied her shishou as she stared upon her likeness, wishing that she too was like her in so many ways. To have already found that place where you belong and where you are needed must be the most happiest moment of all, and Sakura did not know if she'd ever find hers.

Taking a deep breath, Sakura brushed the hair out of her eyes before turning around to continue back up the stairs. Just as she was about to reach the threshold, the wind blew the bare backs of the her thighs giving her goosebumps as she searched for a good tree to sit under. Picking the one that stuck furthest out on the cliff to catch the wind, Sakura silently walked over before putting her back against the trunk and slid down with a thud.

Sakura unzipped her boots and slid her bare feet across the grass. The cooler temperature was just what she needed to let out that relaxing sigh she had been searching for all day. Shutting her eyes, she let her thoughts drift to wherever they pleased, but found that she could not help but come back to the source of her problems.

Images of a young woman with red hair and black-rimmed glasses suddenly floated across Sakura's mind. In the first moment that they had met, the hostile looks that Sakura was given immediately told her that jealousy over Sasuke was the issue. Though Sakura did nothing in response, it still stung her that she was looked at in that way. Perhaps this girl Karin knew more of her history with Sasuke than she let on, and it wouldn't be surprising after all the time that they had spent apart. Still, Sasuke wasn't the kind to kiss and tell.

Sakura's brow furrowed as she churned through old memories. Everything back then seemed so petty and foolish now that she thought about it. To put it plainly, it disgusted her to think how she used to be, always falling over Sasuke and being nothing but useless on missions. How she let herself be that way she could not explain except to say that she was young and foolish. Never again would she allow herself to do such a thing.

Tiny spurts of light tickled Sakura's eyelids as the branches above her gave glimpses of the sun's rays, and she took in another deep breath in an effort to wipe out all negative thoughts as she tried to get one moment of peace. Seeking refuge within the tree's grasp, Sakura imagined that its branches were wrapping around her like the arms of a lover, forever protecting her from any harm that came her way. As she felt her body soften between its imaginary limbs, she felt a shadow pass over her just as she was about to find a smile.

"What is it, Naruto?" she asked.

Sakura did not open her eyes as her ears followed the sounds of Naruto's footsteps leading him to the tree beside her's. When she heard the thud of his butt landing on the earth, only then did she venture to peek open her lids and tilt her head slightly towards him. Seeing that he did not want to speak just yet, she once again closed her eyes and let the breeze do the talking for them.

"Sakura-chan..." said Naruto after a while. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Why?"

"You've been acting weird. Does it have to do with Sasuke?"

Sakura took an irritated breath and opened her eyes to the world below. There were so many things she wanted to say, she didn't know where to begin.

"If you think I'm in love with him still, you're wrong," Sakura spoke solidly. "I'm just..."

Sakura tsked in anger as she clenched her fists upon the ground. It seemed that finally putting it into words only added fuel to the fire.

"I'm just pissed, that's all. I mean, what the hell do we do now? Sasuke's back so we don't have to chase him any longer, but what about everyone else? What about Sai? Do we just let him disappear back into ROOT after he stuck by us for so long? Does Yamato-taichou go back to pushing the hard life with ANBU? Don't get me wrong, I'm happy he's back, but I just think a tiny 'thank you' would have been nice..."

Sakura was so surprised as to how she had managed to put together everything that she was feeling. In the end, it had all boiled down to losing her new found friends and the lack of a "thank you." After all of their heated efforts to bring Sasuke back, never once did he ever stop to say that he was sorry and that he was appreciative of their efforts. Who cared about it not being in his personality? What mattered was that he got over his conceitedness to do it.

Naruto looked over to Sakura who instinctively turned away to hide her face. He sighed as he picked up a leaf that had fallen onto his leg and began to twirl it by the stem. He too became frustrated as deep down he felt the same way. No one knew what this meant for the team, and Naruto really didn't want to lose Sai as a teammate even though Sasuke was back. They all didn't get along smoothly, but then again, neither did the original Team 7 when he came to think of it.

"Not even a single 'sorry'..." Sakura whispered. "Not one..."

It was evident to Naruto that this kind of talk was much better suited for someone female, like Ino. Although he knew what Sakura was saying, he just didn't know the right words to respond. Tossing the leaf in his hand aside, Naruto looked out over the village below as the sun slowly began to fall in the sky.

Naruto and Sakura sat at the edge of Konoha for several hours until twilight had struck. Not a word was spoken except for heavy sighs that told eachother that the mood had not changed. When the lights of the homes began to number in the fifties, Naruto got up and extended his hand out to Sakura's solemn face.

"Come on, Sakura. I'll walk you home."


	2. Chapter 2

"Huhhh... " Ino sighed with her chin resting on her hand. "This stinks..."

There she was in the middle of summer, manning the cashier of her family's flower shop on one of the rare days that she had off. As her irritation grew more and more pronounced, Ino's thoughts began to turn negative as she nodded towards Konoha's latest gossip.

Only a week had passed and already news had spread like a wildfire of the hot newcomer in town. It seemed that even after all this time, Sasuke was still the object of many girls' affections. Disgusted by the thought of him, Ino felt sorry for Naruto and Sakura when she heard of his return. Although she and Sakura were once rivals in obtaining Sasuke's attention, they were still best friends, and it didn't stop Sakura from seeking Ino out yesterday to unload some of her hard feelings towards their old comrade.

In truth, Ino was angry at Sasuke too. Now that he was back, she might never see Sai again if he disappeared back into ROOT. With him being on Team 7, Ino was more likely to run into him whenever she met up with Sakura.

"Stupid Sasuke..." Ino mumbled as she watched the wind ruffle the bunches of flowers. Dropping her head down onto the counter, Ino shut her eyes and groaned in discomfort.

"Sasuke!" came a whining voice. "A flower shop! Let's go in!"

Ino popped her head up at the sudden sound of his name. Surely they couldn't have meant the very same Sasuke she was thinking of. Looking towards the open doors, she found that her irritation was about to get much worse.

"Sasuke! Buy me roses!" Karin begged as she pulled him into the store.

Sasuke stopped dead once he saw a familiar face looking back at him.

"Ino..." Sasuke whispered as Karin dragged him forward.

"Excuse me! Could I please get a bouquet of these!"

Ino's face fell dead of expression as she made her way around the counter and acted as if she didn't know Sasuke.

"These?" asked Ino with a smile.

"Yes, please," Karin answered as she beamed at Sasuke.

The moment that Ino turned to walk back around the corner was the moment that she made the ugliest face she could to get it out of the way. By the time she had turned back to face them, she was ready to hold her composure all the way until they left.

"Thank you, please come again," said Ino as she handed over the flowers.

As Karin turned to drag Sasuke out of the shop, he stopped and turned halfway out the door to address his unsteady feeling.

"Ino..." began Sasuke, immediately alerting Karin to his familiarity with the girl with pretty blonde hair. "What's going on? What happened to Sakura?"

"Sakura!" Karin huffed. "You mean that chubby girl with pink hair?"

Ino fumed.

"CHUBBY! Who are you calling chubby you FAT PIG!" shouted Ino as she jumped over the counter.

"What did you say bitch?"

"Get the hell out of my shop!"

A hand was suddenly thrown in front of Karin just as she was about to pounce.

"Karin... go find the others," Sasuke ordered.

"What!"

"It was you who lost them in the first place... Go find them."

Karin was steaming as she stepped back and left Sasuke with Ino. From the moment she agreed to take her leave, Ino glared at her until she could no longer see any part of her body in the doorway. When she was completely gone, Ino gave Sasuke an ugly look before whipping around to walk back to the counter.

"Ino, wait," called Sasuke. "What's going on?"

Ino stopped in her tracks and gripped the edge of her apron with both hands. She was trying so hard not to be angry, but she just couldn't handle it.

"You want to know why Sakura's acting this way?" Ino narrowed her eyes as she turned to face Sasuke. "She's pissed! That's why! Ever since you left, Sakura and Naruto had fought so hard to find you, all the while taking flack from the villagers for pursuing a traitorous bastard like you! They tried so hard to get you back, and now that they have, you're acting as if none of it happened, and you brought that nasty-haired bitch in to spoil Konoha's reputation for beautiful women to boot!"

"YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED!" Ino screamed as she stomped off into the back room of the flower shop.

Sasuke was left stunned and speechless as he had never had a girl yell at him like that before. Looking around in bewilderment, he took a few seconds to let it wear off before he silently took his leave and exited the store. As he stepped out of the shop, he let the sun beat down on him and could only feel one thing at that moment: shame.

* * *

Sakura stood on her balcony looking down at the people passing below. The tiny side street where she lived was quiet and empty for the most part, and she was glad that she lived there as she was less likely to run into anyone she didn't want to see. Resting her head on her hand, she daydreamed away until a patch of blonde hair made its way closer towards her home.

Sakura sighed in regret as she moved to slide open the balcony door. Making her way lazily down the stairs, she arrived at the front door just in time to open it a second before Naruto knocked.

"Ohiyo, Sakura-chan," Naruto smiled. "Tsunade-baachan wants to see us... Sasuke too. Don't worry though, I already told him to go there alone so you don't have to walk with him."

"Thanks," said Sakura as she shut the door behind her. Stepping beside Naruto, they both turned to walk towards the Hokage's office.

"Do you think Tsunade-baachan is going to stick Sasuke back with us?" asked Naruto as he looked around at the shops they were passing.

"Who knows. Now that Sasuke has his own team, it's likely she'll make him stay with them because they already know how to work as a group."

The walk to Tsunade's office was long and torturous for Sakura, and as they rounded the bend to see the stairs leading up to the Hokage's office, Sakura grimaced as she found that Sasuke's team was waiting at the bottom. Taking a deep breath, Sakura tried not to look offended as they came closer.

The sight of Sasuke's old team made the new one uncomfortable, but none more so than Karin as they passed. Taking the opportunity to mark her territory, Karin grinned as Sakura and Naruto passed.

"Juugo, do you like my bouquet of flowers? Sasuke bought them for me..."

"No he didn't," said Suigetsu suddenly. "You bought those after you dragged him away from us!"

Sakura smirked as she walked up the stairs. Though she wasn't looking, she could feel the embarrassed expression that Karin was giving at that moment.

_I don't know who that guy is, but I like him already,_ Sakura thought as she stepped into the building.

As Naruto and Sakura walked the rounded corridor to the Hokage's office door, the sound of Tsunade's voice trickled towards them in what sounded like irritation. Taking the initiative, Sakura took a deep breath and grabbed the door knob to step in for her fate.

"Ah, Sakura," Tsunade nodded as she turned her eyes on her student. "I'm glad you two finally made it."

Sakura walked forward with her head held high to take her place beside Kakashi, Sai and Sasuke. Tsunade's face was hard and tough, so Sakura looked to Shizune standing behind her whose face was soft with a consoling look. Though Tsunade was a tough shishou, Sakura knew that Shizune was the true emotional expression that Tsunade always carried with her.

"Sakura, Naruto," began Tsunade. "I was just explaining to these two that although Sasuke has returned, he will remain as captain of his own team but will also work simultaneously with yours when need be. In fact, I've already got a mission lined up where I will need both teams together."

"Hai," responded Sakura.

"The mission is not going to happen yet, but I figured I would get your teams out of limbo and let you know to prepare ahead of time... I recommend bonding."

The last word rubbed everyone the wrong way. Somehow the awkwardness in the room was multiplied once it was uttered. Though the expression on everyone's face stayed the same, the simultaneous fidgeting was evident.

"You're dismissed," said Tsunade. "I will let you know as soon as I decide when to send you out."

As everyone turned to make their way towards the door, Sakura made her way out last as she knew what was coming next.

"Sakura..." came Tsunade's ominous voice. "Stay for a moment, please."

Sakura watched as Naruto looked back and closed the door behind him. When it felt as if the presence of the others had made it out the building, Shizune spoke first.

"Are you okay, Sakura-chan?"

"I'm fine, really. Don't worry about it."

Tsunade tsked at the sound of "don't worry."

"Shit," Tsunade swore as she brushed back her bangs. "I don't like this one bit. Something is wrong. I can feel it."

"What do you mean?" asked Sakura.

"Well, I figured I should tell you since you're my student, but something's not right about this whole situation with Sasuke."

"We think he's hiding something..." whispered Shizune. "Didn't you ever wonder about the sudden reappearance of his team and their willingness to return to Konoha?"

Sakura stopped for a moment to ponder the question. "I guess I was too mad at him to notice..."

"Well, I'm asking you to be my eyes and ears in this situation," ordered Tsunade. "Sasuke's much more advanced. I can see it. I can't get ANBU close to him anymore. I will need you to be my inside person. Kakashi's already aware of the situation, but it will be you and Naruto who will be with him the most."

"What about the other members of Sasuke's team?"

"I want you to monitor them as well, but keep your eyes on Sasuke as he seems to be the one making all of the decisions."

"Hai," Sakura bowed and turned to leave them.

"Oh... Sakura?"

Sakura turned to face her shishou.

"Don't be a stranger anymore. We've missed you this past week..."

Sakura gave a tiny smile and was thankful that she had such friends. Nodding in reassurance, she stepped out of the office door and walked out to find Ino waiting for her at the bottom of the steps.

"Boy, oh boy... do I have a story to tell you!" Ino squeaked.

* * *

"You did what!" shouted Sakura over the sound of their Yakiniku sizzling.

"Yupp! I socked it to that bastard a real good one!" Ino laughed as she punched a fist into her other hand.

"Oh my God... I love you, Ino..."

"I know," she beamed back.

The rest of the meal flew by quickly as the two chattered away loudly. When they had finally finished, Sakura treated Ino by paying the entire bill in thanks.

"What are you doing now?" asked Sakura as they walked out of the restaurant.

"Well, my break is over, so I've got to get back to the shop and keep the red-haired freak from coming back in."

Sakura snickered. "Well, I hope that you'll be okay and not get any complaints."

"Considering the fact that I'm generally nice to my customers, my mother knows I wouldn't have done it without good cause. If not, she'll get over it..."

"Thanks again, Ino."

"No problem. Anytime, really."

When the two girls arrived at Ino's shop, Sakura waved one more time in gratefulness that she had such a friend before making her way back towards her apartment. As she walked alone, she felt as if someone was watching her. Stopping in the middle of the street, she tried to feel out its presence.

Sakura silently stood still and waited until the feeling of being watched had subsided. She wasn't sure that it was real, but she looked around anyway. When she was sure that everything was okay she once again picked up her feet and made her way home. Turning the corner, she didn't notice that someone was peeking at her from between the buildings on the other street.

Though Sasuke's face showed no expression, his heart was reeling with guilt for what he had done, and regret for what he had to do. As he watched Sakura's pink head disappear around the corner, he felt his body relax from the intensity of seeing her again. Somehow, all that time he had spent away from her only intensified the feeling of being loved when she pleaded for him to stay. In all honesty, though his true mission in Konoha was the reason he returned, he secretly wanted to return to see her. Nobody else realized it, and not really even him.

"Well, well, well..." came a voice standing behind Sasuke. "If it isn't my original student!"

Sasuke turned around to find a beaming Kakashi.

"What are you looking at?" Kakashi asked as he peeked between the buildings and saw nothing. "Hiding, are we?"

"Hello, Kakashi."

"Eh? No Kakashi_-sensei?_ Ah... I miss those days. You three were so cute then! Trouble, but cute!"

"What do you want?"

"What ever do you mean," asked Kakashi as he put his hands in his pocket and leaned against the building.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you never said 'hi' to people unless there was a reason."

"Well, at least you remember that much about me. It's time to bond, as Tsunade-sama requested. Come on, let's get a drink... I assume you know how to drink now, don't you?"

Sasuke looked at him expressionless before agreeing to follow, but looked back hesitantly, wondering if Kakashi knew what he was doing there.

"Don't worry," said Kakashi as he led the way. "I won't tell her you were peeking."

* * *

As the afternoon fell into evening in Konoha, Sasuke found it a bit hard to steady himself upon the stool where he sat beside Kakashi. The tiny sake stand at the edge of town was a perfect place for a quiet reunion between the two. Although they had conversed before, this was the moment when they really got to have a conversation, and they wasted no time in discussing the future of their teams.

Listening to Sasuke describe his new team members and their abilities, Kakashi sat quietly and calculated in his head how they were going to approach the upcoming mission. It seemed that they were all dangerous in their own sense, but they were useful in many ways. Suigetsu sounded like the person whom everyone depended on to be hard to figure out, especially when it came to figuring out how to defeat your enemy. The hardest opponent to beat was the one you took too long to find out their weakness.

Karin was a useful tool, not only for tracking but in cases where your fighters depended on strategy and extra efficiency. Her usefulness in replenishing chakura was indeed a rare gift, but Kakashi couldn't imagine biting her even if she had a nice body.

Juugo was the wild card of the team, very much like Naruto though without the irrational behavior to charge into situations. Though Juugo could fly off the handle, his maturity seemed to make up for those qualities and his ability to communicate with animals offered a less obvious way of surveillance.

"Sounds like you've got a winning team," said Kakashi as he brought the sake cup to his mouth. The flash of him pulling his mask down to drink was so quick that it still stunned Sasuke after all these years.

"So..." began Sasuke. "Tell me about your team."

"You mean, 'tell me about Sakura-chan!'" Kakashi teased as Sasuke nearly choked on his drink. Clearly he was drunk.

"That's not what I meant."

"Hmmm... Sakura... Sakura... What can I tell you about Sakura..."

As Kakashi pondered what to say, the silence from Sasuke as he did so was a telltale sign that he was in fact, interested to hear about Sakura.

"Well, let's see... Sakura has gotten a hell of a lot stronger than you would have ever imagined," said Kakashi, suddenly putting down his cup and his expression becoming completely serious.

Sasuke too put down his cup and looked sideways at Kakashi's countenance.

"Shortly after you left, Sakura took it upon herself to no longer be weak, and it has become the epitome of her goal. In fact, I think she even put finding you as second. Her strength is amazing and it comes from her talent at chakura control. What's even greater than her fighting ability, I think, is her knowledge and skill as a medical nin. I think she may be even stronger than Naruto..."

"Really?" Sasuke said nonchalantly. "Who would have thought it possible for someone who was as weak as her..."

"Sakura isn't weak," Kakashi cut in crudely. "She never was. You all couldn't see it, but I did."

Sasuke heard Kakashi pause and turned to see the mean look on his face.

"You know how I knew?" Kakashi said intently. "It was her dead eyes..."

"Dead eyes?"

"Yes... but I guess you wouldn't know because you've never fought against her. All those years of us training together, she only looked at you with those twinkling green eyes of hers, never seeing what they were really capable of... When I had you three attacking me back in those days, your eyes were calm and calculating, Naruto's were crazy and irrational, but Sakura's... there is no other way I could find to describe it other than being utterly dead. When she came at me in all seriousness, the sparkle in them were gone, the lights had disappeared leaving nothing but darkness. In essence, there was only one target that existed, and it was me. Her eyes... they become soulless like a true killer. You all never noticed because her skills back then were insufficient and I could easily dodge them, but I always knew... One day her skills would match her eyes and then we'd all be in trouble... In fact, I really don't think she's reached her full potential, and it scares me..."

Sasuke stared at the sake lingering at the bottom of his cup. Absorbing what Kakashi had just said was tough to imagine, but hearing the sound of his voice speaking those words told him that it was no laughing matter.

"Now, as for Naruto... his stupidity still has no limit..."

* * *

Sasuke walked silently home towards the old Uchiha part of town. As the sound of the crickets chimed in the grass, he tried to imagine the dead eyes that Kakashi spoke so ominously of, but all he could see was the glitter in Sakura's eyes and the tears she wept when he had left.

"Ah! You're back!" Karin waved from the gate into the Uchiha neighborhood. "We've got dinner!"

"I'm not hungry..." said Sasuke as he passed her like a ghost.

Karin's smile washed away as the smell of sake enveloped her senses. Though there was no misstep in his walk, it was clear that Sasuke had drunk a lot.

Sasuke moved past the silent stares of Juugo and Suigetsu as he made his way upstairs to his old room. Laying down on the bed, he turned his head sideways until his eyes landed on the old picture resting on his dresser.

The colorful collection of different kinds of hair stood out like a crayon box that was the picture of Team 7. Everyone was so young then, and Sasuke's innocence had already been tainted by the murder that took place in the very house that they now slept in. The old memories still haunted him, but he had found a new hatred thanks to Madara having told him the truth of Itachi's past. It seemed that he was moving from one revenge to another, and as drunken sleep finally overtook him, the last thing he saw was the splotch of pink that emanated from the old photo.


	3. Chapter 3

The smell of food emanating from the kitchen wafted into Sasuke's nostrils as he slept during the early hours of the next morning. Opening his eyes he saw that the sun was just peeking into his room, but already the house seemed to be awake. Sasuke sat up and looked down to find that he was still in yesterday's clothing, so he slowly stood up from the bed and made his way over to the shower.

_Knock, knock._

"Sasuke!" came Suigetsu's voice from outside the bathroom door. "Breakfast is ready."

Suigetsu waited for a response but received none. Shrugging his shoulders, he made his way back downstairs.

"Karin, why are you acting like Sasuke's wife when you can't even cook worth a damn?"

"Shut up!" she yelled as she scooped rice into a bowl. "I may be a shinobi, but I know how to cook at least!"

Juugo sat out on the porch and tried to drown out the sound of their voices. Even though they were there for Sasuke's revenge for his brother, he couldn't help but shake the feeling that what they were doing was wrong. After being welcomed so heartily into Konoha it was hard to imagine turning on such common folk. It was the first time that Juugo had been in a setting where people weren't afraid of him, and it hurt to think that it would be destroyed.

"Stop yelling. It's still early," said Sasuke as he came down the stairs.

"Ah! Sasuke! I made you teishoku!" smiled Karin with a blush.

"Arigatou..."

As Sasuke sat down to his meal, he looked up and noticed the remorseful expression on Juugo's face as he sat staring out into the garden.

"What's wrong?" asked Sasuke as he put down his chopsticks.

"Hmm? Oh, nothing..." Juugo lied.

When Sasuke hesitantly picked up his chopsticks, Karin felt it was time to notify him of business.

"A messenger from the Hokage came to the front door this morning," began Karin. "It seems the main mission is being postponed for the time being and she is sending us on a tiny mission with Kakashi's group. She's probably trying to see if we can work well together first."

"What's the mission?" asked Suigetsu.

"Apparently there's a tiny skirmish between two Yakuza groups in a smaller village west of Konoha. Their clashing is beginning to turn violent and is spilling into the streets. The officials of the town have requested help as corruption is undeniable. Someone is purposely turning these groups against each other, and they have a feeling that it's a third Yakuza group that is instigating the fight. They think it might be linked to a high-ranking official as well."

"Man, we've been reduced to these petty skirmishes? I'd rather have been working for Orochimaru!" Suigetsu complained. "No fun, I tell you..."

"Sounds good. When do we leave?" Juugo said suddenly as he stood up. In truth, he was glad to be traveling on a mission as it meant their true purpose in Konoha would be postponed as well.

"We leave at dusk," answered Karin. "The messenger said it would take half the night to get there and the Hokage didn't want us to be spotted by any relations to the Yakuza."

"Fine..." sighed Sasuke. "Thank you for the meal. Let's get supplies and meet back here by noon. There's some things I want to go over with you about Kakashi's team."

* * *

"Alright, here's how we're going to do it," began Kakashi to Sasuke's team once Sakura, Sai and Naruto arrived at the eastern gate. "The reason for the two teams is that the village is completely split down the middle at the moment. Anyone caught switching between the two sides of town comes under a lot of scrutiny by both sides. First, we're going to meet the head official that requested Konoha's aid. After our debriefing we're going to split up to the different sides and see if we can find out who's behind the war. I'll leave it up to you on how you want to do it, but I've already decided that we're going to be putting an inside man, and dare I say woman, on the job."

"What?" said Sakura with a snap of her head. "What does that mean?"

"The official we're meeting has jobs lined up for a waitress and a bouncer at two of the local sake bars. Apparently it's the hangout of most of the Yakuza members. Did you bring what I asked?"

"Yeah..."

"Let me see it."

"Kakashi-sen..."

The threatening look Kakashi gave Sakura was enough to make her want to punch him right then and there. Reaching into her bag, she reluctantly pulled out a black long-sleeved dress that went down to her knees.

"Tsk, tsk... I thought this would happen. Well, she should be here in a moment," said Kakashi as he looked down the road.

No sooner had he said that did a familiar face come running towards them. As Shizune huffed and puffed, she stopped ten feet short of them to hold up a gift bag with tissue paper sticking out of it.

"I got it..." Shizune huffed.

"Arigatou!" chimed Kakashi as he stepped forward to take the package from her.

Digging inside, Kakashi messed up the neat looking tissue paper as he pulled out a sleek black cocktail dress with a low cut front and wire-thin straps.

"What the!" shouted Naruto as Kakashi held up the dress to Sakura with a smile.

"I think I got your size," said Shizune as she looked between Sakura and the dress. "Just wear a push-up and everything will be okay."

"Senpai!" shouted Sakura in embarrassment as she snatched the dress out of Kakashi's hands. "You could have done this a little sooner! LIKE EARLIER TODAY!"

"Well, we knew you'd give us a hard time, so it had to be kept secret. Now, hand over that thing you brought."

Sakura reluctantly handed over the nicest dress she had in her closet and put the new dress back in the gift bag before stuffing it into her backpack.

"Good, now you're ready!" said Kakashi with a smirk. "Let's get to it."

* * *

As the orange sky faded into a deep shade of purple, the air became cooler and the wind grew a little stronger. It was in awkward company that Sakura walked onward, eagerly awaiting the cover of darkness to hide her ever depressing features. Keeping her head straight forward with an expressionless face, she dared not to look at Sasuke as no doubt Karin was watching to see if she was peeking at him.

_How annoying..._thought Sakura as she shrugged her pack higher onto her shoulder. _As if I would want that jerk after everything that happened? Please... don't insult me._

"Well, at least we don't have to go to Suna this time," sighed Naruto as he lazily threw his hands onto his head. "I'm still getting sand out of shoes from the last mission..."

As Naruto trailed at the end of the crowd, he began to notice that everyone had suddenly become rigid in their postures. Looking towards the front he saw that Sasuke had somewhat picked up his pace to become the head of the group. Over to his left, Suigetsu had spaced out towards the very edge of the road. Naruto curled his brow as he then looked to the right to find that Sakura had done the same. That's when Naruto realized a most important feature of the group.

"Ano... Where's Sai and Kakashi-sen..."

A knife slashed out of the shadows at Sakura with a sloppy-looking man attached to it. Stepping back, the knife missed her chest right before she grabbed his wrist and broke it.

"NANI DATTEBAYO!" Naruto yelled over the screams of pain.

Suddenly five men jumped out with swords and charged at the group. Flipping his sword, Suigetsu broadsided two of the attackers and sent them slamming into the trees. Sasuke closed the distance between himself and another attacker with a solid punch to the man's face. The speed was so quick that the attacker had barely lifted his sword completely back for the cut. Not wanting to miss the action, Naruto rushed and tackled a man who was headed straight towards Karin.

"I'll get this one!" shouted Juugo as he grabbed the arms of the man trying to cut him. Swinging him around, Juugo sent the man crashing into a tree trunk.

Everyone checked to make sure the coast was clear, but the sounds of the man with a broken wrist was still ringing through the air. Sakura threw a regular punch that knocked him out completely and looked back at the others with a nod.

"They're just bandits..." said Suigetsu as he squatted over one he had knocked out.

"I wouldn't say that," said Karin as she came over to inspect the other one.

Kicking open the flap of his shirt, Karin revealed the Yakuza tattoos strewn across his body.

"They knew we were coming?" voiced Sakura as they were all thinking the same thing. "This presents a problem..."

"What?" said Suigetsu as he stood up. "So they knew we were coming, so what?"

"What she means is that the suspicions that this involves a high-ranking official is confirmed!" scolded Karin. "It means that our whole mission is going to be much more difficult as the man who hired us is also unaware of that official's actions, trusts him, and therefore telling him our movements. We also won't be able to confront the traitor without careful consideration as to how his supporters will respond! If we make false accusations, Konoha's image will be greatly tarnished and no one will want to hire our shinobi! It has now become a political issue for us!"

"Wow... You can tell all of that by looking at one Yakuza, eh?"

Karin looked like she was about to pop a gasket when Sai suddenly appeared out of the shadows. Following close behind him was Kakashi who was carrying a dead man over his shoulder.

"We've got even bigger problems," said Kakashi as he dropped the body to the ground.

The look of the body laying before them instantly alerted them to their newest danger.

"Shinobi... Kumogakure..." said Sasuke as he observed the man's clothing and scratched out symbol for the Village Hidden in the Clouds.

Everyone looked at each other with the same worried look.

"But why would there be only one shinobi with a group of six Yakuza men?" asked Naruto.

"He wasn't with them when I found him. He was probably scouting ahead but they got to us first, which means that the shinobi that were hired are few in number so they used some of the Yakuza's men to help out. I wouldn't doubt that there are other shinobi covering the roads to the village."

"He must have expected that we'd be traveling through the woods," said Sasuke. "Karin, are there any others?"

"Not close but not far off either. We have time to hide the dead one. What do you want to do with the others?"

Kakashi sighed as he looked at the problem at hand. "Well, they're going to figure out sooner or later that six of their men including one shinobi is missing. We might as well leave them be and let their comrades clean them up."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Okay then, from now on we travel through the woods where I found this guy just in case."


	4. Chapter 4

It was just after midnight when the two teams arrived at the borders of the village. Stopping to check the activity in the area, Naruto found himself pondering at the number of warehouses that stuck out like sore thumbs everywhere, and noted the slightly pungent smell that filtered through the trees.

"What did you say this village is named?" he asked.

"Sake," replied Sakura. "They're a major supplier of sake in the region. It's also a huge trading ground for suppliers."

"Oh... well that explains it."

"Yupp, and it also explains why shishou would postpone our original mission to save the village that produces her favorite drink."

"Hehehe... I see."

"Come on," said Kakashi. "We need to get to our client's house. He should be up waiting for us."

The two teams moved silently around the edge of the village until they came upon a canal. Halting for a drunk man who was picking his way through the bottom of it to pass, they quietly crossed over and went for another half mile before coming to a much wealthier part of the village.

"I believe this is the one," said Kakashi when they pulled up to a walled compound with a small red tag hanging from its rim. "The client's quarters should be just on the other side."

After scaling the wall, the teams found themselves in a beautifully landscaped rock garden complete with a stream and choi-filled pond. The sudden sight of them alerted a man who sat on the porch that wrapped around the home, and he stood up to signal them over to him.

"Hajimemashite," said the man with a bow. "I am Wataru. Please come in. My employer is waiting for you."

Turning around, the man grabbed the edge of the shouji door and slipped it open.

"If there's anything you need, please do not hesitate to ask me," he said politely as he let them pass.

"Ah! You're here! I was beginning to doze off!"

Sakura peeked around Kakashi's tall being to see that the squeaky voice came from an elderly man with a tiny beard and mustache. Just like his voice, his physique was quite small as he sat upon the floor next to a table with documents strewn across the top. The air about him seemed friendly and warm, and his beady eyes shined with excitement at the new company.

"I was reading for a bit but my eyes aren't very strong anymore. They tend to ween out after about five minutes or so. I'm Mamoru, by the way. Thank you for coming all the way out here."

"Tsunade-sama sends her thanks. She is still reminiscing about the last jar of sake you sent to her," Kakashi bowed.

"That was a good one, wasn't it? Well, have a seat! Please! Get comfortable as I have a few things to go over with you. After today, I am afraid our contact will be limited... So! Let's see what I've got here..."

Everyone sat and watched as Mamoru thumbed very slowly like the old man he was through the stack of papers in front of him. Pulling out two sheets, he nodded his head before handing them over to Kakashi.

"These are the addresses for the places your people will be working. Fortunately, my grandsons have taken it upon themselves to become my eyes and ears into the Yakuza world. Though they haven't joined, they are bartenders at these locations and will call for help should any of you need it. It wasn't the occupation I would have chosen for them, but in the end they have good intentions and brave hearts. Luckily nobody really knows they're related to me. Was a bit of an absentee grandfather, I'm afraid..."

Sakura looked at the regret in the old man's eyes and felt for him. She could see by the wrinkles on his face that he was once a very driven young politician and that family seemed to have been neglected. In the older years of his life, he must have come to realize just how much he had missed out.

"So, tell me how you want to proceed," Mamoru said as he leaned against the table.

Kakashi nodded and waited a moment before choosing his words carefully.

"Well, we have two teams that will separate and take up positions on either side of the village. Even though we have people working the bars, I've chosen to split each team into two units so that we have one group in the night life and another to walk the day. This way, the person working the bar can be watched over while the other unit is free to investigate the other areas of the village. My team will stay at the same inn, with Sai and Naruto rooming together while I stay with Sakura-chan. This way we shall also seem unrelated to each other should anything happen."

"Sounds like an efficient plan," Mamoru laughed. "I see Tsunade-sama has keen shinobi at her dispense!"

"She sure does," smiled Kakashi. "Well, I'll be the one reporting directly to you so you don't have to worry about anyone being seen around your home. If you'll excuse us, we should go and check into the inn before we get spotted by too many people. We'll change into civilian clothes before we do."

Everyone stood up and walked into a separate room to change. From what Sakura could hear from her side, Naruto wasn't too keen on the idea of staying with just Sai alone, and his irritation slowly became more and more evident as they were about to proceed back to the meeting room. Sakura smacked Naruto on his back to get him to shut up before throwing her pack back onto her shoulder. It was one thing for him to act this way in front of people they knew, but it was unacceptable to do it in front of a client.

"Oh, one more thing," said Kakashi to Mamoru as they were about to leave. "We were attacked by Yakuza and shinobi on the way here. Someone knew we were coming."

"That is bad news indeed..." said Mamoru. "I only told the village's counsel of your coming, and that only consists of five others. Now, if they've told any of their friends, I couldn't tell you..."

"Well, from here on out I ask that you please refrain from letting them know of our presence in the village. Domo arigatou gozaimashita."

As they left through the way they came, Wataru once again bowed before signaling to Kakashi for a private audience.

"Sir," began Wataru. "I know that you are commissioned to do this job, but please, take care when you are visiting Mamoru. If word got out of his dealings with you, he and his family would most certainly be in danger. Please use the utmost discretion."

"Not to worry," assured Kakashi. "I will not report anything unless it is absolutely detrimental to the mission. If you need to contact us, just leave a message at the inn and I'll have someone checking for them every day."

Wataru watched as the two teams scaled the compound's wall with such ease. As he waited to hear the last sounds of them disappear, he worriedly took up his post again and waited patiently for the outcome.

* * *

"Why can't I stay with Sakura-chan!" Naruto whined as the teams made their way back into the woods.

"Dream on, Naruto..." Sakura whispered. "It ain't gonna happen."

"Well, why can't we stay together? Sasuke's team isn't splitting rooms!"

"My team will do the same on the other side," interrupted Sasuke. "Karin will stay with Suigetsu, and I will stay with Juugo."

"What!" yelled Karin. "How come I have to stay with this slob!"

"Because I have to watch over Juugo. Besides, you can stay outside and make sure that any unwanted trouble can be stopped before it hits Suigetsu at the front doors of the bar. You'll have to be the one to keep his temper in check and anticipate the dangers."

"Uuuuugh!"

The whole group seemed to be disturbed deeply by the time they finally parted ways, and as Kakashi nodded to Sasuke in a final farewell, they set this final place in the woods as their rendezvous point for updates every two days. They agreed that no one would make a move unless the other knew about it, that way they could coordinate their players on the other side.

"After this point on, there must be no public communication between the team's units, not even a head nod," warned Kakashi. "At least if one unit is discovered, the other can take over. Understood?"

Everyone nodded in agreement and turned to part ways, and as Sasuke made himself last, he took one look back for a glimpse at Sakura's pink hair disappearing into the darkness. All he could feel in that moment alone, was worry. Something in his gut told him that she was about to be taken away from him forever.

* * *

"This is it," said Kakashi as they pulled up to a small sign that stuck out from a gray building. If you had blinked, you would have missed the tiny curtained entrance.

"'Everlasting Romance?'..." Naruto read the sign out loud. "Hey... Wait a minute! This is a love motel!"

"Yeah... It was the only place that had an opening on this side of town."

"Unh-uh! You're not staying with Sakura-chan here!"

"Look, Naruto," said Sakura as she suddenly stepped between him and Kakashi. "I don't like this just as much as you do, but right now, it just doesn't matter what I think. If you do your job right, the sooner we can all get out of here. Got it?"

Naruto couldn't argue with that. He knew that if he wanted the situation to change then he was going to have grit his teeth and get it done. Still, that never stopped him from whining about it through the whole way like all the other times.

"Don't worry Naruto, I'll help you get through this rough time," Sai said with a smile.

"Shut up, Sai..."

"Hai, hai... let's get going please," Kakashi pushed on. "Sakura and I will go in first, then you two check in five minutes later."

Kakashi put his hand on Sakura's back and pushed her towards the front door first. Naruto grimaced at the sight as he knew that Kakashi just didn't want to be the one to get the keys from the front desk. If there was anything more embarrassing than grabbing the keys at the front desk of a love motel, however, it was having to walk in with someone like Sai by your side to do it too.

"Konbon wa!" Sakura smiled at the woman behind the desk. "We have a reservation for Sakura, I think?"

"Ah, yes, I was beginning to wonder about your reservation. It's already quite late," said the woman as she took out a set of keys. "My name is Saori. There's already a set of fresh towels prepared. If you need anything else, just ask me or any of the staff and we'll be happy to help you. Your room is upstairs, 3B."

"Arigatou gozaimashita."

Sakura bowed and followed Kakashi who walked silently ahead of her up the stairs. With his hands in his pockets, Kakashi could feel Saori's eyes on them until the bottoms of their feet disappeared out of view. Though nothing ever bothered him, it felt as if he was doing something naughty in the presence of an old woman, and even though Saori must have seen this kind of sight countless times, it still didn't help the feeling of guilt as he finally reached the third floor.

Sakura fumbled nervously with the keys until finally pushing the door open. The sudden sight of having only one bed in the room made her stomach flip, but she didn't say anything until the door was locked behind them.

"Just one bed?" she asked.

"Gomen, but this is a love motel. It wouldn't make much sense with two."

"I guess..."

"You can stay with Naruto, if you want."

Sakura immediately took off her boots and threw her bag onto a chair without complaint before moving to the window to peek out the curtains. Looking below, she found that Naruto was still whining to Sai as they finally made their way into the building. Sakura shook her head and turned around to find a most unsettling sight.

Kakashi was standing over by the bed with his back to Sakura as he began to untie the knot of his kimono wrap. Sakura looked away for a tiny second but then turned back once she saw the tight black sleeveless undershirt that connected to Kakashi's mask. The muscles on his exposed shoulders were accentuated in every movement. There had to have been no fat percentage on his body whatsoever, and Sakura quickly turned back around in guilt at having looked at her sensei in such a way.

_I'm going to have to sleep next to that!_ Sakura gulped. _Oh my God... What if I fart in my sleep!_

"Everything okay?" Kakashi asked when he saw the tension in Sakura's shoulders. "Are they still fighting out there?"

"Ahem! Yeah... they're walking in now."

The sudden footsteps and voices outside were recognizable and it obviously was Naruto and Sai's. Kakashi looked over at Sakura in curiosity as clearly they couldn't just be walking in right now. Furrowing his brow, he strode over to her side to peek out the window as well.

"Is there something else out there that you see?" he asked, his bare shoulder brushing up against her arm.

"No... just observing what shops are nearby. I'm kind of hungry but nothing's open."

Sakura quickly stepped back from the window and away from Kakashi's touch. Grabbing her pack off the chair, she quickly slipped into the bathroom and shut the door to release a much needed sigh of relief. She then placed the pack onto the counter before leaning against it with her hands. Shutting her eyes, she tried not to be so nervous.

Sakura could count the number of times she had slept in bed with a man on one hand, and the thought of sleeping next to an especially hot one made her stomach turn. In fact, she had never really come into contact with another male counterpart, even when she slept outdoors next to Sasuke and Naruto. In all those years that they had gone from town to town, they had always slept on tatami floors and were spaced decently away from one another. However, this was a love motel, and there was no need for such a thing. Sakura reached over to open her pack and suddenly realized a very important detail.

_Shoot!_

Knowing that it was summer, Sakura had packed shorts and a thinly strapped top with a picture of an angry teapot on it. Pulling the items out of her bag, it was the only sleepwear that she had brought as they were strapped on carrying much. Typically Sakura didn't like sleeping with her bra but due to the circumstances, it was necessary.

Sakura took off her utility pouch and began stripping off her garments. As she thought more and more about what was coming, her movements stiffened and she ended up catching her foot on her shorts as she tried to put them on, stumbling forward and knocking her head on the wall.

_*knock!*knock!*_

_"Sakura? Are you okay?" _she heard Kakashi ask from the other side of the door.

"I'm fine! Just dropped my bag!"

Quickly brushing her teeth and straightening her hair up, she took a deep breath before stepping out to find Kakashi sitting on the chair holding his toothbrush.

"My turn," he said as he quickly got up and passed her to get into the bathroom.

Sakura quickly made to take advantage of the moment by dropping her things near the side of the bed that was closest to the door and slipped under the sheets to hide herself from Kakashi's view. Pulling the blanket up to her eyes, she shuffled beneath the sheets and curled into a ball so that her limbs were tucked safely away from the other half of the bed.

The sudden opening of the bathroom door startled Sakura as Kakashi then shut the lights off. As she tightened herself into a tinier ball, she suddenly saw a shadow move to stand over her and she looked up to find Kakashi standing on her side of the bed.

"Can you sleep that side?" he asked.

"Mmm..." Sakura nodded as she switched over to the other side. "Is something wrong?"

Kakashi grabbed the sheets and separated them so that Sakura and he each had one of their own. As they began to position themselves for sleep, Kakashi took a deep sigh and put his hands behind his head.

"It's just something my mother told me..." he finally answered.

"Hmm? What did she say?"

Kakashi ruffled his hair and pushed it back out of his face.

"Ah... it's nothing. Get your beauty rest, you're going to need it."

Sakura looked over through the dark at Kakashi. She could feel the sadness coming from him as he shut his eyes. Recalling the few occasions in which the subject of his past came up, he had always been quick to dodge or ignore any inquiries on the subject. It was like he didn't want to remember anything, and she didn't want to push him to. Sakura pulled the blanket up to cover her lips and shut her eyes, and as her heart dwelled upon what kind of a past Kakashi had, her thoughts melted into a subconcious stream that softened her shoulders and relaxed her hands.


	5. Chapter 5

Sakura put on her shoes then stood up to throw her pack over her shoulder. Looking back over to the bed, she remembered the anxiety of last night and the fears she had of her sensei. In truth, she was a bit sad that nothing happened. Afterall, it would have been nice to finally feel a man holding her once again, but she shook her head at the thought of it being Kakashi.

_Impossible... _thought Sakura. _How could someone like Kakashi ever look at me? _

"Ready to go? I just checked with Naruto and Sai. They patrolled all day, but nothing came up," said Kakashi as stuck his head back into their room. "You got everything?"

Sakura nodded and winced at what she was going to have to do. But, just like she had told Naruto the night before, they were just going to have to push through it as best as they could.

"Yupp, ready. You're coming too right?" she asked as she followed him out the door.

"I'm going to meet the Mamoru's grandson with you and then I'm going to drop by later when the bar opens to keep an eye on you."

"Arigatou..."

The sun was just disappearing over mountains as Sakura and Kakashi made their way to the Tsubaki Bar. The first sighting of it made Sakura nervous as it was obvious from the outside what kind of men sleeked around here.

"None of them better touch me..." she whispered to Kakashi in warning. "... or I can't promise that my cover will be blown."

"Just keep your temper in check. I'm sure Mamoru's grandson will assist you."

Kakashi knocked on the front door and listened for footsteps within. When he finally heard someone approaching, he stepped back and waited as the bolt from within was unlocked.

"Ah! Welcome! Come on in!" said a very young man who was dressed in a most stylish fashion. "I'm Jotaro, as I'm sure you're aware. Is this Sakura?"

"Hai, Sakura desu. I hope that we can be of service."

"My! You're about my age! I wasn't expecting a shinobi to be as young as I! You must be quite skilled if they're leaving you here."

"Sakura is more than capable," Kakashi smiled. "I see your grandfather managed to get a word over to you."

"He sure did. I just hope he managed to get it over to my cousin on the other side. Now, let's get over the details quickly as the bar opens in an hour. Have you worked in bar before Miss Sakura?"

"Please, you don't have to call me 'Miss'. Sakura is fine. And no, I haven't worked this kind of a setting before."

"Okay, then we'll cover the most important parts first..." said Jotaro as he walked over to the very back of the bar to point to a long booth. "Here is where the boss sits. He goes by the name Kabuki and you'll know him by the dragon tattoo that sticks out of his collar and climbs up his neck. To his right sits a man with a scar just below his right eye named Goro. That's his number one man... To his left sits his mistress. It's usually never the same girl, but recently he's taken a liking to a woman by the name of Yuko. She's a bit older than the other women he's brought, but intellectually she's more savy than the others... All three of them take warm sake, and always one bottle each. Typically they drink seven bottles a piece and are never irrational. It's their underlings that you've got to watch out for..."

Jotaro crossed the room and motioned towards the two booths that sat adjacent to the bosses.

"This is where the rest of them sit. They are always rowdy and ALWAYS irrational. Whatever you do, don't piss any of them off. Even though Kabuki is old-school Yakuza, he still lets them do whatever they want. I'm afraid to say it, but you will have to serve them at one point. The position you're filling has been filled by more individuals than I can count, so please, bare with it for as long as you can. That's pretty much all you need to know for now. Just take the orders and I will fill them. You'd better get dressed now and zen out before the customers start coming in."

Sakura nodded and watched Kakashi leave back out the front door. Before he completely disappeared out onto the street, he turned back to give Sakura a reassuring look and then shut the door behind him. She was going to be alone from now on, and she had a bad feeling that she was in over her head.

* * *

Night fell outside the windows to the Tsubaki bar, and Sakura sat eagerly on a stool waiting for the first customer to arrive. She was wearing the new black dress and had her face and hair done up in a sleek and sexy fashion. Nervously she tapped her fingers on the bar as Jotaro stood nearby.

"Don't worry. I won't let anything happen to you," Jotaro said as he neatly stacked the shelves behind the bar with sake bottles. "I've got a bit of sway with the group, and they've been pretty receptive to my requests."

Sakura nodded but then turned quickly over to the front door that burst open with a loud bang. It seemed that the Yakuza were out early tonight because six of them just walked through the front door.

"Ah! Jotaro! Ten sake bottles please! The boss is on his way here now..."

Jotaro nodded to the man. "I see! Thanks for the heads up again, Shin. By the way, this is the new waitress, Sakura."

Sakura tried to keep her smile going as she bowed to Shin who was blatantly giving her elevator eyes.

"Irashaimasen!" Sakura chimed.

"Wow... where ever did you get this hot piece of meat?" Shin asked Jotaro.

"Hahahaha... A mutual friend contacted me and asked me to get her a job. I just happened to have an opening."

"Well I'm glad you did. Please have this pretty little thing serve us all night. I'd prefer to have her give me drinks than have to look at your pretty-boy face!"

Sakura bowed and turned to help Jotaro at the bar, but that's when she felt it.

_*SLAP!*_

Sakura bounced forward as Shin's hand made contact with her butt. Balling her hands into a fist, Sakura came very close to pummelling the sorry excuse for a man but was stopped by a pleading look from Jotaro. She didn't look back at Shin as she made her way safely behind the bar, and she rubbed her backside once she was out of view. If there was anyone in this world who surely had a death sentence, it was Shin.

The door opened again and Sakura was relieved to find a roughly dressed Kakashi sporting his same mask and a worn out kimono. He must have been going for the just-got-off-of-work look, because he strode over to the bar and shlumped in front of Jotaro for a drink. Sakura bet that he must have seen them walking in, but it was a good thing he didn't see what Shin did earlier as it was embarrassing enough that she had to let it slide.

As Kakashi sat down at the bar he nonchalantly turned his head towards Sakura. The moment that he laid his eyes on her he had to do a double take. He had never seen Sakura like this before. Though he had seen her wearing make-up several times during festivals, he had never seen her in such an ensemble and in such a setting. The serious look on her face and attention to every detail made her look, for a lack of better words, grown up. He quickly regained his composure and looked away. To hide what he had just done Kakashi immediately ordered a drink, but as he sat watching Jotaro pour sake into his cup, he could not help but feel a tinge of guilt.

Sakura put the ten bottles with cups on her tray and made her way over to the booths in the back. Balancing the tray with shinobi-ease, she crouched low to place the bottles in front of everyone. She gave a sigh of relief as the six men seemed distracted, but her hopes of not being touched again were dashed when she felt Shin's fingers firmly pinch her right cheek.

Sakura kept walking straight towards the bar shielding a look of death from the Yakuza's view.

"Easy, Sakura..." whispered Kakashi as he raised a cup to his mask. "Keep it cool..."

Sakura squeezed the rim of the sink and dented it much to Jotaro's surprise. Straightening her posture, she tried to regain her composure.

Another loud bang sounded at the front door as the rest of the group finally arrived. Kakashi's slumped in a drunken stupor as Kabuki and his men passed behind him. Sakura looked at the Yakuza boss and instantly knew how he had gotten his knickname.

The curves of Kabuki's face were turned downward much like the actors in a Kabuki performance. Even the corners of his eyes were sharp and stretched outward in permanent anger. If it wasn't for the lack of hair on his head, the living persona of Kabuki would have been complete.

Walking closely behind Kabuki was a man in his thirties who was quite handsome yet had a scary look about him. His presence when he walked by seemed to push at Sakura's core and make her want to step back. His head was shaved and the scar below his right eye must have surely bled for days. Sakura knew this because she had one just like this on her back. She had to change the sheets several times after it soaked through the bandages at night while she slept.

Sakura winced as the woman following behind Goro had passed. The strong smell of perfume was enough to give anyone a nosebleed, and she tried not to let them see her eyes twitch in disturbance. Clearly the woman was not someone of high-ranking status in society, otherwise she wouldn't have tried so hard to make her ability to afford perfume known.

_Maybe Kabuki and the others are immune to it by now..._ Sakura thought as she bowed to hide her disgust.

"Are you ready?" Jotaro whispered.

"Mmm."

Picking up her pad and pen, Sakura walked over to the back of the bar and waited until everyone was seated.

"May I take your order?" she asked.

Kabuki looked at what was on the table before answering.

"Get us five more bottles of warm sake. This is gonna be gone once that one takes a swig..."

Yuko giggled with glee as she picked up the bottle to pour Kabuki a drink.

Sakura bowed and turned to walk away. As she did, Kakashi sat leaning drunkenly over the bar sneaking looks over to the table. His eyes were calculating as they scanned the soon-to-be drunken horde, but what caught his attention was not Shin's attempt to climb over his comrade to reach Sakura's butt again, but the cool and calm eyes that Goro had as they followed Sakura's physique back to the bar.

Kakashi knew that look very well and it tinged his heart with a bit of worry. Goro was the kind of man that he had seen many times in bars. Those eyes were the ones that all women should be cautious of, the kind that follow you home when you're not looking. Perhaps Goro wasn't the type to do so, but he was definitely the possessive kind whom once locked on a girl, would require pliers and fire to remove.

_A natural tick..._ Kakashi thought as he turned back towards Jotaro. _Sakura might be more in trouble than the village is._

The night went on smoothly as Sakura tried to steer clear of Shin's reach. Other customers began to filter in, including two older men who looked exhausted from working all day in the warehouses. Sakura did her best to keep everyone happy despite the frequent requests from Kabuki's table. She checked upon the other customers as frequently as she could and smiled warmly the whole way through despite Shin's constant attempts to touch her. Goro was especially observant of this fact, the corners of his mouth curving upwards in faint traces of a smile whenever she in turn made someone else do the same. Her kind and gentle nature attracted the hearts of the men around her, but it wasn't until the next moment that Goro would become completely hooked.

"How are you all doing over here? Is there anything else I can get you?" Sakura beamed.

Kabuki shook his head and brushed her off as he was busy flirting with Yuko.

Sakura bowed and turned to walk away, but that's when Shin's drunken will pushed him to jump over his friend and rush towards her butt with both hands open.

"Kochi! Kochi!" he grunted as he grabbed her cheeks with both hands.

Freezing in anger, Sakura felt her blood boil and could not hold back any longer.

Sakura turned and smacked both of his hands off of her with one hand. Grabbing him by the collar, she flew him backwards into a chair which sent him tumbling with his feet going over his head. The sheer force in which she threw him with sent the whole bar into silence, and Sakura, not giving a shit about who was watching, let her words fly.

"I don't give a shit if you're Yakuza! You don't ever touch me again! YOU GOT THAT!"

Shin scrambled to get back up and it was evident in his fiery eyes that he wasn't about to let his pride slip to a girl.

"YOU BITCH!"

Shin rushed at Sakura with a hell-bent intent on tackling her to the ground. Just as he came within five feet of her, however, a fist flew in from her left and struck Shin across the right side of his face.

A table smashed into huge splinters as Shin's body struck its top. Stunned by the sudden interference, Sakura turned to find that Goro had run across the entire table to get to her in time.

"Oh my God... Gomenasai!" Sakura bowed lowly to him in realization at what he had done. Every single bottle of sake that was on the table had been knocked over and spilled onto the floor.

Goro ignored Sakura's apologies and went straight for Shin's neck. Grabbing it with one hand, he lifted Shin up onto his feet and began to squeeze his throat with his strong hand.

"What the hell are you doing! You're embarrassing the boss!" Goro yelled.

Sakura stood in shock as she watched the scene unfolding. Turning towards Kabuki, she saw that his eyes had gone from being full of joy to sheer anger. The look alone caused her to step back as she could feel his evil intent shooting past her at Shin.

Goro waited until Shin looked like he was about to pass out. When his eyes started to roll back, Goro threw him to the floor leaving him coughing and gasping for air.

"I'll clean this up right away," whispered Sakura with her eyes to the ground in embarrassment. "Please forgive me."

Sakura didn't dare to look back up at Goro as she turned to go back to the bar, but had she done so then she would have found that his eyes were full of infatuation as he was captured her by her spirit.

"You don't have to rush," came Kabuki's voice. "We'll be leaving now anyway. All of this fighting has made me yearn for a... massage..."

Yuko giggled as his lecherous eyes turned onto her.

"Pick him up... Take him back to the house and get him cleaned up," Kabuki said as he got up from the table. "To be beaten by a girl... whew! I don't think that requires anymore punishment on my part... Come on, let's go..."

Goro stood waiting for the underlings to pick up Shin and drag him off. Putting his hands in his pocket he lagged behind so that he could have a private word with Jotaro.

"Jotaro..." spoke Goro as he paused before leaving. "I expect her to be here the next time we come back."

"H-hai..."

Smiling, Goro followed the others out the door leaving the rest of the bar's patrons to finally breathe.

"Oh my GOD!" Jotaro breathed a heavy sigh of relief once the door shut. "I don't know what just happened, but I didn't expect THAT!"

"Sakura-san? Is she okay?" questioned the two old men.

Sakura stood in the back room with her face completely flushed red. She couldn't believe she lost control like that. She knew she had a bad temper, but never did she lose it in the face of a mission.

"Ano... Sakura..." Jotaro's voice whispered in. "The patrons are asking for you."

"Hai..."

Sakura came out and found that all of the patrons who remained at the bar had moved from their tables to the bar stools.

"Hmm?"

"Ah! Sakura!" said one of the old men. "Please have a drink with us! It's on me! My name is Taro, and this is my trusted friend Takeru."

Sakura looked over to Jotaro who nodded in permission.

"Gomenasai..." Sakura bowed.

"Not at all!" yelled Takeru. "It served him right. I don't know what kind of mother he's had, but surely no mother I ever knew would teach their son such a thing! It's disgraceful how these young men act today!"

Sakura gave a small giggle. Some phrases from older men never changed, and she was thankful for it.

* * *

The evening turned out pleasant in the end as nobody got too drunk nor too bored. When the bar finally closed for the night, everyone was blushing different shades of red and thoroughly happy.

"See you guys tomorrow night," Jotaro called after the patrons as they walked down the street. When he finally shut the door at last, Sakura breathed a heavy sigh at her first day having finally been over.

"Good job today, Sakura. For the most part, you took more control over your actions then you think. A lot of women would have walked out within the first hour of that kind of attention.

"I don't get it..." said Sakura as she wiped the tables down. "Your bar isn't like the dodgy ones that Yakuza usually frequent."

"That's because the other ones in the area always get too rowdy with drunken workers who can't handle themselves. The underlings used to get into fights every night while out with Kabuki. I guess he got tired of it and found had them find my place instead. It's good though. My bar isn't as elaborate as the others, so having a big group that's guaranteed to come in and spend a lot of money keeps my business afloat."

"I see... Hello Sensei. Came to walk me home?"

"Hmm?"

Kakashi suddenly popped out from a shadow behind Jotaro which sent him jumping forward in surprise.

"What the! How did you get back in?" Jotaro asked in bewilderment.

"I never left. You'd be surprised at what you can get away with when people aren't looking."

"Geez, you scared the hell out of me!"

"Hahaha... Sorry about that. So, Sakura? Are you ready to go?"

"Hai..."

"Wait a second!" called Jotaro as he ran around the bar. "Here, tonight's tips. You can take all of it as you deserve it."

"Arigatou!" bowed Sakura. "So, see you tomorrow night then?"

"Mmm."

Kakashi waited for Sakura to walk up to his side before warning her about the dangers of being a single girl having gotten so much attention.

"Don't worry, sensei... I'll be fine. I know I can't defend myself in front of the public, but I can stick to lit areas just like the rest of us women normally do."

"Okay..."

Kakashi watched Sakura step out of the bar first and waited a few minutes before sneaking out himself. If anyone was waiting for her, they wouldn't have hung around long enough to catch Kakashi take his leave. As he traveled the rooftops along the main street he finally came up to her pink head below and saw her stop once she knew he had caught up. He watched her turn into a tiny shop nearby and squatted in patience until she returned carrying packages.

"Aww... Arigatou, Sakura-chan..."

Kakashi beamed as he knew she used that evening's tips to buy some food and supplies. As he squinted to see closer, he saw the familiar protrusion of a bento box.

"Oooh..."

Darting off once again Kakashi moved happily through the night as he relished the idea of a yummy bento. He was about ready to burst with hunger when finally Sakura entered the front door of the inn. However, as he waited on the rooftop to let some time pass, he noticed a man hiding in the shadow of the alley below. He hadn't been following Sakura, yet somehow there he was waiting for her to enter.

_So... You already knew where she was staying, huh? Well, I guess I'll let the little fish go before the big fish knows he's not the only one tailing her... Who are you, little fish?_

Kakashi lowered his head into the alley and caught sight of something he wasn't expecting.

_!..._

The sudden sighting of the man's forehead protector bearing a scratch over the symbol for Kirigakure, the Village Hidden in the Mist, sent chills into Kakashi's back. Sinking backwards out of sight Kakashi waited until he knew the shinobi had left. From what he could tell, the man wasn't a high-ranking shinobi, but nevertheless he thought to be careful.

_Interesting... How did you know we were staying here?_

Kakashi leaped down into the alley and waited until the coast was clear to enter the inn. When he finally made it up to his room, he paused to hear if there was any sign of struggle before unlocking the door as silently as he could.

"Ah, there you are," said Sakura as she placed chopsticks next to their bento. "You waited a little longer than I expected. Did something happen? I didn't notice anyone tailing me..."

"It seems our problems are much worse..." said Kakashi, sitting down and breaking his chopsticks. "There was a rogue shinobi from Kirigakure watching you from outside."

"Kirigakure? But that means..."

"Yupp. We've got Kirigakure and Kumogakure running around the village, and rarely ever do they team up with one another, so it's likely that the opposing sides are in deeper than we think."

"Shit... What do you think he wanted with me?"

"He doesn't know about our operation, that's for sure. Only the rogue from Kumogakure would have known and I doubt they let slip to the other side about their newest problems. What worries me though is that he was waiting for you and not following you."

"It's possible that both sides have hired mercenary shinobi once things really started to escalate."

"My thinking exactly. They probably got in over their heads, hired shinobi, then the other side did too... I just want to know how this guy knew where you were. I think it has something to do with Goro..."

"Hmm? Why Goro?"

"Because..." Kakashi paused to put a huge chunk of rice in his mouth. "... the shinobi only waited for you and no one else."

"Well, if it was Goro then it would have been easy for him to find out around the village where I stayed, but why would he wait for me if he already knew where I was?"

"He was waiting to see which light turned on in the building... Now he know's what room. Plus, he probably wanted to check to see if you were staying with anyone."

"Should we move?"

Kakashi shook his head. "That would only make him become suspicious of you. Why else would you need to switch rooms?"

"You've got a point... Well, I guess that means you'll be keeping your shadow away from the window..."

"Hmph... I guess so..."


	6. Chapter 6

A couple nights had passed at the bar and Sakura was now accustomed to welcoming Kabuki and his men every evening. It seemed that Kabuki was reluctant to go there every night, but she watched him huff at Goro in irritation as it was he who would push to see Sakura every night. Shin's hands were always kept at bay after what had happened the first time, and he lowered his eyes to the floor whenever Sakura came near and never ordered food directly from her.

Kakashi had his regular meetings with Sasuke just outside the village but neither side seemed to get anywhere as there was no fighting taking place that they knew of. There were small whispers of midnight battles but it was always dispersed by the time Kakashi, Naruto or Sai ever got wind of it.

"We need to get closer..." said Kakashi to Sakura as she walked behind the bar where he sat. "We can't tail them as undoubtedly we'll be spotted, but we can't guess their moves either. Naruto and Sai have already reported that their headquarters are being guarded by shinobi so it's too risky to hang around and wait for a something to happen."

Sakura put her tray down on the bar with a resolute look upon her face. When she turned back towards Kakashi he caught a hint of regret upon her face and he tried to stop her before she walked away. Something in her eyes told him that she was sorry, and he heard her whisper a small "gomene, sensei" as she moved towards the sake bottles. Sakura was never one to do anything without authority to do so, but she knew that Kakashi would never agree to what she was about to do.

Sakura picked up a warm bottle of sake along with her tiny note pad and moved towards Kabuki's table. As she made her way towards Goro, she reached past him to place the bottle on the table and dropped her note pad right on Goro's lap.

"Sumimasen!" Sakura hustled to pick up her note pad and blushed terribly as she did. She then sped off back towards the bar as quick as she could and hid herself behind a shelf just out of the table's sight.

_The power of shyness... never underestimate its appeal..._ she thought to herself.

"Did it work?" she whispered at Kakashi to look.

"Sakura..."

"Just tell me what's his reaction!"

Sighing in agitation at what she had just done, Kakashi peeked over to the table to find a very silent Goro.

"Well... due to the dim lighting I can't say for sure, but I'd bet my life that he's blushing... You mind telling me what you just did?"

"I just planted a seedling, that's all. You said it yourself that we need to get close. He won't suspect anything if he makes the first move."

Kakashi picked up his sake cup and downed it in one gulp. There was simply no stopping it now. The tiger had just been set free.

Sakura took a deep breath and walked over to the kitchen to load her tray with plates of food. As she made her way back around the bar, she kept her eyes from making contact with Kakashi's distinctively perturbed look.

"You wouldn't have said, 'yes'" she whispered at the very last moment so that he couldn't respond. Sakura was determined to make this work.

The sudden appearance of Sakura again made Goro look down at his drink. He didn't want her to see the softened look in his eyes. However, when she came closer to him, she placed a plate of delicious smelling Saba and a bowl of rice.

"It's on the house," she said softly. "Sorry about earlier..."

Sakura quickly moved away and walked back towards the bar.

_Ah... The power of guilt..._

Before long, Sakura heard the sound of footsteps rushing up behind her and she turned to find Goro striding towards her.

"Ano... Sakura-san, please do not feel guilty. Allow me to properly make up for what happened the other night. Are you free tomorrow?"

"Hai... The bar will be closed."

"Would you like to accompany me to the Summer Festival?

"That would be great..."

"I will drop by the inn where you are staying at seven to pick you up, then?"

"Hai... Arigatou gozaimashita."

The kind smile that Sakura gave made Goro's heart leap. He not only got Sakura to say yes to his invitation, but he also now had the opportunity to see her in private. As he watched her walk away, he could not help but stare after her. At last he would have the chance to woo Sakura without having to keep his tough facade in front of the others.

Sakura winked at Kakashi as she passed, but he knew better. Men like Goro were only nice during the first stages of dating, but once the pleasantries of a fresh start are over, that's when the ugly green demon of jealousy would show its possessive side. Downing another cup of sake Kakashi bid bansai to his last night of peace.

* * *

"Oh my God what time is it!" Sakura yelled as she threw herself up.

"Ugh..." Kakashi groaned as he put a hand to his hungover head. "What are you yelling about?"

"Shit... It's one o'clock. I have to go shopping..."

Kakashi didn't even bother to get up as Sakura rushed into the bathroom. In fact, he didn't even bother following her out the door to go shopping. By the time he had woken up, she was already back from shopping and back in the bathroom to boot.

_Oh my God... These night missions are a killer. I'm never drinking again..."_

The door to the bathroom suddenly burst open and Sakura came out wearing a beautiful blue kimono with pink accents.

Kakashi's eyes widened as he stared at her beautiful image as she rushed about the room.

"Wow..." was all he could say.

"I've got ten minutes before Goro shows up. Are you following?"

"No... Naruto and Sai are already walking around the festival and will tail you separately while you're there. It'll be suspicious if I'm seen."

"Are you even getting up?"

"Maybe... I'm hungry."

"Ok, well, I'll see you later..."

Sakura slipped on her new Getta and stopped for one last check.

"How do I look?" she asked.

Kakashi somehow couldn't look at her when she said that. Instead, he looked out the window and muttered, "Good."

"Sheesh, you weren't even looking... Bye!"

Kakashi looked back just in time to glimpse Sakura's pink kimono before the door shut. Dropping back down on his pillow, he turned onto his right and stuck his face into something unexpected. Taking a deep breath he smelt something floral, something distinctly female. Opening his eyes Kakashi took another big sniff of something green. He picked up the tiny green bundle and turned onto his back to unravel a thinly strapped top with a picture of an angry teapot. Chuckling he threw it back down next to him.

The shadows on the ceiling slowly stretched further and further across the room as the sun began to set. After a couple of minutes in silence, a sudden urge in Kakashi began to poke at him to follow Sakura. Thinking that he was just worrying for her safey he quickly got up to put on some clothes. His silvery hair was pretty obvious, but not as obvious as a man wearing a hat at night so he left the room with nothing more than his civilian clothing

The cool night air hit Kakashi's upper face and he immediately caught the smell of Yakitori in the air. Soft music emanated from down the road and happy chatter floated through the air as everyone seemed to be making their way towards the festival. As Kakashi walked down the street he noticed that all of the shops were closed with signs hanging in the window stating that the owners had left to join the festivities.

By the time Kakashi got to the field where the festival was held the activities were well underway. He was incredibly surprised to see children running around as he never saw many during his stay there, but then again he wouldn't if he and Sakura had been working the night shift. As he began to stroll down the center lane, his eyes were immediately caught by a pink head at the far end.

Somehow with the lights glowing all around, Sakura's eyes seemed to sparkle in reflection. Her smile was warm and bright as she pointed to the cute charms that stood dangling from a stand. The happiness in her eyes immediately sparked Goro to ask which one she would like. As she tinkered through the charms with glee, Goro's eyes followed her every move in delight at being in such lovely company. In a world where he only knew tough and serious circumstances, Sakura afforded him a taste of innocent happiness. She was young and free, a fresh breath of air that one reaches for after a long haul.

"I like this one," Sakura smiled as she held up a tiny tomato that was a bell. "It's so kawaii!"

Goro smiled and quickly paid the clerk before leading Sakura further. The two of them strolled towards Kakashi who had taken up a spot in the Yakisoba line. The moment they passed him however, Sakura immediately sensed he was there.

"Ooooh..." marvelled Sakura as her eyes got big. "He got one..."

Standing over a tiny pool filled with goldfish was a five year-old boy in a blue kimono. He was clapping his hands as the clerk tied a plastic bag with a tiny goldfish inside. Crouching beside the pool was a very disappointed young man with blonde hair, grumbling at having not been able to catch anything.

"Mmm... I was never good at that game..." Sakura mumbled, ignoring the conspicuous Naruto. "Sasuke always won them..."

"Who's Sasuke?" asked Goro, waking her back into reality.

"Oh! He was a boy in my class. You know, the cool one that always made everything look easy..."

"Hmph... Wanna give it a try?"

Sakura shook her head at the suggestion. It was a childish thing to do, but nevertheless she really wanted to, and Goro could tell.

"Come on, I insist."

"Ok..."

The clerk handed Sakura and Goro a net made of paper. As they crouched beside the pool, Sakura noticed the scars on Goro's fingers and hand. They were consistent with kunai use.

"Congratulations!" Sakura beamed as Goro unsurprisingly caught a fish with the first try. As he smiled proudly, Sakura did not want to lose as well and caught a fish on her second scoop.

"Hah! I did it!" she chimed as the clerk placed both fish into one bag.

"Tell you what, I'll carry the fish and you can keep them," said Goro as they stepped out of the booth.

"Really? Arigatou gozaimashita! I think we should name them though..."

Goro lifted up the bag and studied the fish intently.

"Well... This one is tough and ugly looking like me, so we should name him Goro... This one is graceful and beautiful... I think we should name it Sakura."

_How cheesy... _thought Sakura as she smiled and tried to force a blush. Hooking her arm in Goro's, he in turn blushed instead as they made their way back down the lane.

Kakashi cautiously stared after the couple as they walked away. Something in him didn't sit right as he watched Sakura smiling up at Goro, and his chest tightened when he saw her lean her head into him. Sure, Goro was handsome, but Kakashi feared that Sakura might forget what kind of man he was and become attached to him. If there was one thing they didn't need, it was for Sakura to be distracted from their mission.

Moving over to the booth where masks hung for purchase, Kakashi went and tried on one with a dog's face.

"Naruto..." he said quietly. "Are we forgetting our purpose?"

Naruto shot an irritated look at Kakashi and put down the frog mask he was holding. Snuffing, he went on to trail after Sakura's date. It seemed he was never able to enjoy a festival, not even at home.

* * *

Later that evening Kakashi sat on the edge of the bedwaiting to hear footsteps coming up the hall. When he finally did, he noticed that it was irregular and clumsy, and much to his surprise it stopped just outside his door. Leaping to hide behind the door as it opened, he was relieved to find that it was Sakura whose drunken footsteps he had heard.

Kakashiwatched as she tipsily kicked off her getta and immediately went into the bathroom. She had moved so quickly that Kakashi didn't even get the chance to reveal himself. Dumbstruck, he moved to go back to the bed but the bathroom door burst open again and an underwear-clad Sakura came out to grab the pajamas she had forgotten.

Completely dumbstruck, Kakashi stood there frozen as Sakura traipsed around daintily until she made it to the other side of the bed and looked up to find Kakashi staring at her.

"Whoah!" she yelled as she ducked behind the bed and grabbed at the blanket to cover her. "Where the hell did you come from! I thought you weren't here!"

"Gomen..." Kakashi whippped around. "You came in so fast that I didn't have time to get your attention... Uh... Are you drunk?"

"What?... NO!"

Sakura stopped to check herself for a second. The fact that she had to stop and think about whether she was drunk meant she was.

"Shit..." she mumbled. "Gomenasai, Kakashi-sensei."

"It's alright..."

"Ok... Well, don't look..."

Sakura dropped the blanket and fumbled through the sheets to find her pajamas. To her surprise she found her top stuffed beneath Kakashi's pillow, but brushed it off in haste as she made her way towards the bathroom. The moment the door closed behind her, Kakashi let out a deep breath at the awkward moment. Though he was her sensei, he still had to admit, Sakura had a great body.

Kakashi sat down on the bed and tucked his legs under the sheets. Though he tried really hard to fall asleep, somehow the sound of the running shower made him anxious as he waited for Sakura finish. When she finally came out from the bathroom, Kakashi had his eyes shut but was completely awake. He could hear Sakura hang the kimono up in the closet and throw the rest of her clothes down on the chair. As her tiny feet shuffled to the side of the bed, Kakashi became nervous when he felt the bed move as she climbed in beside him.

"Goodnight, Kakashi-sensei..." she mumbled.

"So... How did it go?"

"It was fun... A lot of fun... More than I had in a really long time..."

"Did you find out anything?"

"Yes... Goro is shinobi. I'm guessing that he is the one leading the shinobi on Kabuki's side..."

"Sakura..."

"Hmm?"

"Be careful... Goro isn't as nice as he seems... He has a mean streak."

"Don't worry, sensei," yawned Sakura as she turned and rested her hand on Kakashi's arm. "I'll be okay..."

Looking down at her, the weight of Sakura's hand became heavy as Kakashi could tell that she had now fallen asleep. He had never seen her this drunk before, so he left her alone and shut his eyes. As he felt his body sink into the bed, Kakashi remained still as a tingling warmth overtook his arm where Sakura's hand lay. Not once did he pull his arm away from her while she slept, nor did Sakura pull hers away all night.


	7. Chapter 7

Kakashi seemed distracted as he sat at the bar the next evening. Over and over he swirled his tiny cup of sake unconciously as Sakura roamed the tables behind him in service. It was already eleven o'clock, an hour later than when Kabuki and his group normally showed up, and Kakashi had unknowingly made it to his second bottle of the night. Jotaro noticed the sudden increase in drinking and meandered over to Kakashi's end of the bar.

"You know, being a bartender has made me incredibly susceptible to people's dispositions... What's bothering you?" he said as he leaned an elbow on the counter.

Kakashi looked up and chuckled. "Oh, nothing really. I'm just wondering where this mission is headed. It's already been a week and a half and we seem to have no real leads."

"Are you sure that's what it is? You know, normally if it's work troubles, a man just keeps pounding back the drinks... However, when a man twirls his sake cup, it's generally woman trouble... Anyone I know?" snickered Jotaro as he smiled over to Sakura.

Kakashi ignored this remark as the front doors suddenly opened and Kabuki came striding in. The sudden appearence of his group immediately sent Sakura into a hurry as she ran over to the bar to prepare their drinks. As she quickly carried them over to the group, she noticed that a vital person was missing.

"Where's Goro?" she asked.

Kabuki huffed as Sakura poured his drink. "He's handling business for me. Don't worry, your boyfriend will be here shortly..."

Kakashi tightened his stomach at the word "boyfriend." Something about it just rubbed him wrong as he peeked over to get a glimpse of Sakura's situation. Before long the front doors opened again and Goro came walking in. As he passed Kakashi, the smell of blood on him was obvious along with the smell of what seemed like smoke from an explosion. From what Sakura had said the night before, everything seemed to fit in that Goro was indeed shinobi.

Sakura looked up from serving Kabuki's table to see Goro approaching them.

"Ah! You're hurt!" she said once she caught the fresh cut on his face. Rushing away from the table she returned quickly with bandages and a full bottle of warm sake to sit beside Goro.

"This might sting a bit," said Sakura as she poured some of the alcohol on a bandage. Putting it to his cut, Goro winced and immediately picked up the bottle of sake to take a swig. "What happened?"

"Nothing I couldn't handle," said Goro intensely as he stared over to Kabuki. "I just need a drink... Arigatou, Sakura..."

"Mmm..." she shook her head. "It's nothing... Is there anything else I can do for you?"

Goro took gave a deep sigh and looked into Sakura's worried eyes.

"There is one thing... Join me for a drink?"

"What? But I have to..."

"Jotaro!" Goro shouted. "I would like nothing more than for Sakura to accompany me in drink tonight..."

Jotaro nodded in agreement. "Don't worry, I can handle it from here..."

As Jotaro walked to grab more bottles from the kitchen he mumbled to Kakashi as he went.

"Not like I have a choice..."

Goro reached over for a small cup and placed it into Sakura's hands before throwing one arm around her shoulders and pouring her a drink with the other.

"Ah... Arigatou gozaimashita," Sakura nodded before taking a sip.

"Come, come now..." said Goro. "I will teach you how to drink like Yakuza before this night is through... Here, let me show you how."

Goro reached to pick up another cup and filled it to the rim before topping off Sakura's.

"Kampai..." he said as he tinked his cup against hers and threw it back to empty his cup. "That's how you do it."

Sakura nodded shyly and in turn downed the cup's entire contents.

"There we go..." said Goro with a chuckle. "Perfect."

The gleam in Goro's eyes alarmed Sakura and she instinctively turned to look back at Kakashi in worry. Kakashi caught the look and immediately threw back his cup as well. It was going to be an irritable night. Turning to Jotaro, Kakashi sighed as he knew what had to be done.

"Fill it with warm water this time..."

* * *

When Kabuki's group was finally ready to leave, Goro was completely drunk and his head was drooping. He clung to a slightly drunken Sakura who had managed to make it seem as if she really was emptying her cup. Instead, she had been drinking only half so that everytime it was refilled, it wasn't as much as it could have been.

"Come on, Goro," said an underling named Reo. "Let's get you back to the house... Gomenasai, Sakura-san. He only gets like this after a particularly tough battle, and judging by this one, it must have been bad..."

Sakura smiled and nodded to Reo. Although he was the lowliest underling who rarely spoke, he definitely had the politest manners of the bunch. Perhaps his young age made him slightly more innocent than the others.

"Wait... You're not coming?" Goro asked as Reo began leading him away.

"Don't worry, she's going to catch up after she cleans up," said Reo as he winked at Sakura.

Sakura smiled and mouthed a silent "Arigatou" with her hands pressed together in thanks. They both knew that there was no way Goro was going to remember anything in the morning.

As the last of Kabuki's party dragged their drunken leg out the door, the only people left in the bar were the two old men who were there every night, Kakashi and the bar staff. Sakura threw here tired arms onto her head with a big sigh before beginning to pick up all the plates.

"Are you alright? That was quite a bit of drinking..." said Jotaro as he brought her tray over.

"Yeah... Nothing I couldn't handle..."

"Well, what do you say we all de-stress with a few drinks? That is, if you can handle it."

"Oh I can handle more, believe me. I would rather be beaten by the drink than a couple of sharp shuriken anyday."

"I'll bet... What do you say? You men want to join us in a drink?"

"With a pretty girl like Sakura-chan? What jiji would refuse!" yelled Taro.

"So nice to sit with a young girl full of spirit," chimed in Takeru. "It's not often that this happens!"

Sakura pushed some of the smaller tables together so that they all could sit and chat face to face. Hurrying over to the bar she took three bottles filled with sake and brought it over to set it on the table. When Jotaro had finally sat down with the rest of them, Taro began a most surprising conversation.

"So... How long have you known Sakura, Kakashi?"

"Hmmm?" Kakashi looked stunned. "I... knew her for only a few days now since I've been coming here..."

The two old men laughed.

"No," said Takeru. "How long have you REALLY known Sakura?"

A silence passed among the group and Sakura looked at Kakashi uneasily.

"What do you mean?" asked Kakashi.

Taro laughed. "You know, we may be old men, but we sure aren't dumb. Takeru and I have been working these warehouses since we were Sakura's age and we know every face that works in these parts. However, you came walking in like you had worked these yards for several years... You can't hide it from old timers like us..."

"Not to mention you showed up the same night Sakura did," added Takeru. "So, what's really happening here if you two are so keen to hide your relation?"

Kakashi chuckled. "Well, I guess the jig is up. You got us there... We're actually shinobi from Konoha. We were hired to dig up the disturbances with the Yakuza. Apparently it's getting out of control..."

"You have no idea!" huffed Takeru. "Those little punks have been causing so much grief around here! Their little clashes in the streets are the reason that children aren't allowed outside anymore. A few weeks ago a kid got caught in the cross-fire! His poor mother... I still can't get her screams out of my head... But, isn't this something that the local authority can handle? I mean, why hire shinobi?"

"Well it seems that the Yakuza go deep into that authority that you're talking about. Not to mention, we believe that their is a third group purposely causing this fight between the co-existing Yakuza groups. It's like they're trying to weaken the two by having them take eachother out so that the one instigating it all can step in an takeover..."

"I see... Well, do you know who in the local council is calling the shots?"

"No..."

"Well, we do," said Taro as he took a sip of sake.

"What?" said Sakura, shocked. "How do you know?"

"If there's one thing we know, little Miss, it's that corruption is fattening! If you can't find the money trail, look for the crumbs!"

"..."

"He's talking about sake," answered Takeru. "All corrupted men gorge themselves on pleasantries. Take the Yakuza for example... Kabuki is HUGE!"

Everyone laughed at the realization.

"So," said Sakura as she poured them all another round. "Who's the politician we're looking for."

"That's would be Tanaka..." said Taro. "... Tanaka Shinji... We load the warehouses and view all the paperwork. If there's one politician ordering more sake than the rest, it's Tanaka. Either he's got an alcohol addiction or he's hosting Yakuza in his home."

"Well what do you know?" said Kakashi. "All this time we've been trying to figure out who it was and you had the answer the whole time! ... Hehehehe... I don't suppose you could tell us who the third Yakuza group is?"

"Hmmm... Well, you know that Kabuki isn't one to take orders, but here's little tid bit that might make you squirm..."

Taro motioned for Jotaro, Sakura and Kakashi to lean in closer so that he could whisper.

"... Shin's surname is Tanaka!"

"NO!" they all said in unison.

"Yup! Yup! Shin is Tanaka Shinji's son!"

"That little bastard!" shouted Sakura. "You mean that punk who grabbed my ass is Tanaka's son!"

"Yes, he is..." smiled Takeru. "We'd know that rascal kid anywhere! You see, he got sent away by his mother and father for schooling way before Tanaka made it into politics. Before that he was just a wealthy man. His son ended up turning into a gangster after running away from school and didn't return until he was flat broke! It would have looked bad on Tanaka's part so they both agreed to have Shin keep his distance. However, some people who've been in this town long enough can still tell who he is... He was such a brat when he was a kid! Throwing rocks, scaring old ladies... I once kicked him on purpose but made it look like an accident..."

"Hehehe... I did that too," beamed Taro. "No wonder we're friends..."

"Wow... I never knew that..." said Jotaro. "So, does that mean there's no third Yakuza group?"

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," said Kakashi. "It sounds like Kabuki and the others have no clue as to who Shin's father is, otherwise he wouldn't be so low of an underling."

"That's true," agreed Sakura. "So then Tanaka is the one trying to rub all of the other Yakuza out?"

"Mmm... Tanaka is probably going to have Kabuki and the other high-ranking Yakuza killed once that happens, and let his son step in to take over."

"If the authority and Yakuza take over the town as one, we're really going to be in for it..." sighed Jotaro in grief. "... This town would be a haven for thugs and slave drivers..."

"You've got that right," said Takeru. "So... whomever called you in from Konoha really knew that the situation was dire. Please let me know who that person was later so that I can thank them once this is all over."

For a short while the group sat theredrinking their sake in silence as they all pondered the future of the town. After one or two coughs they once again took up a happy conversation and drank until the three bottles were gone. At that point Jotaro ran back to the bar and grabbed four more as it seemed he was set on erasing the horrible feelings of that night. The town in which they lived in was truly something special to them. It was where the two old men and Jotaro had lived all their lives, married their wives and had their children, and it was those hard working streets that they called home. If it meant more to anyone else in the village, it was those three individuals that sat across from Sakura and Kakashi that night. By the time everyone was ready to pack it in, not a single person remaining was able to walk a straight line home.

"We'll walk Sakura-chan home," said Taro.

"More like she'll be walking us!" laughed Takeru. "I have to say, if we're attacked, please feel free to push my drunken body in the way so that you can escape. I can't feel a thing!"

Sakura laughed. "So, Kakashi-sensei, are you going to follow on the roof again?"

Kakashi nodded and pointed them all to the door. After saying their drunken thanks to Jotaro, the group finally went out into the chilly streets.

* * *

By the time Sakura and the two old men made it to the front doors of her inn, Kakashi felt like he was about to slip off the roof. The sake had finally hit him with full force and he was more than ready to kick off his shoes to climb into bed. After waiting five minutes after Sakura went in, Kakashi leaped down into the alley before crossing the street into the inn.

The long walk up the stairs seemed like forever as his footsteps were heavy with drink. Reaching for the doorknob he turned it open to find Sakura slipping out of her sleeky black dress. As he shut the door behind him she looked over her shoulder.

"Sorry sensei," she said. Apparently she was too drunk to really care that he was looking at her.

Sakura slipped on her pajamas and removed her bra beneath it before falling onto the bed. She watched as Kakashi walked over to the chair with a disturbed look on his face.

"What's wrong?" Sakura asked.

"Nothing..."

Flopping onto her side, she squirmed to get under the blankets and sighed a drunken sigh as the world seemed to blur. Her heavy eyes watched as Kakashi took off his kimono to reveal his naked back to her. He then slipped on his black shirt that covered the lower part of his face. Though Sakura had never really looked at him before, she had to admit that his body was nothing short than HOT. Kakashi pulled down his pants and revealed a tight set of boxers beneath them. He then shuffled his way drunkenly over to his side of the bed and sat down.

"Goodnight, Kakashi-sensei..." said Sakura softly.

"Goodnight..."

Sakura was dozing off by the time she felt the bed move as Kakashi got in. Her eyes opened slightly to see him lifting up the blanket as he settled in beside her. What was different, however, was that the side of his leg was now touching hers. Too tired to care, Sakura ignored the leg and went on to try and sleep. When she felt his hip touch hers though, she instinctively turned onto her side to face the window.

Thinking that Kakashi was just drunkenly moving about, Sakura was surprised when a hand suddenly came over and stroked her tummy. The sudden touch immediately alarmed Sakura. Whatever alcohol she had influencing her thought was now thoroughly gone. Frozen in fear, she though maybe that he had done it in his sleep.

Kakashi's hand came back and soon Sakura found that it was rubbing her tummy this time. She was so scared that she stopped breathing and could not even move. As the strokes became deeper, her heart jumped when his hand suddenly went south and slipped under her shirt.

The softness of Sakura's tummy was unlike anything that Kakashi had ever felt. The smoothness of her skin was very much alike to a cashmere sweater. He stroked her back and forth as he slowly made his way up to feel something even softer. The side of Kakashi's thumb brushed against the bottom of Sakura's breast and it drove him mad. There was no way that she couldn't be feeling this, so he moved his hand back down to dip it beneath the rim of her pants.

Sakura didn't move a single millimeter as Kakashi reached deep below her belly line. Just when she thought he was going to go further, he pulled his hand out and began nudging the rim of her pants down the side of her hip. Panic set in with Sakura but still she couldn't move, not even when he slipped down the back of her pants to feel the crack of her cheeks and further down to touch her front. The sensation between Sakura's cheeks were warm and yet cold as Kakashi delicately touched her there. He still knew that she was awake and decided that it was time for her to acknowledge his presence.

Kakashi pulled his hand out and reached over to grab Sakura's hand. Pulling it back, he placed her hand upon his crotch and left it there to go back to touching her.

_Oh my GOD! _thought Sakura as her eyes were now wide open. _What the hell do I do! He's my sensei!_

Kakashi continued to feel the warmth of Sakura's stomach and soft breast. Unsatisfied with just that area, he returned to digging into her pants as he hovered slightly over her.

_Oh my GOD! WHAT THE HELL AM I GOING TO DO! I can't just leave my hand there lifeless! Shit... It's been what, how many years since I've had sex... and that wasn't even very pleasurable! _

The stroking began to take on new heat as Kakashi began to rub more aggressively. Every time he brushed her cheeks he wanted to rip off all of her clothes but would go no further until she moved. Inching towards the front, he rubbed lower this time until he felt a soft bit of fuzz.

_Sakura... My GOD! Move!_ she thought to herself. _Afterall... How many chances are you going to get to touch your hot sensei! Girls DREAM about this!_

Kakashi smiled as he suddenly felt Sakura's hand stroke his crotch with slight vigor. Seeking to use the only opportunity they would ever have to be alone, Sakura turned over to see Kakashi looking at her.

The look in Sakura's eyes showed that she was nothing short of uncertain, so Kakashi pulled his hand out and reached over to grab her face to turn her further towards him. Lowering himself close to her, Kakashi pulled down his mask instantly to plant a wet kiss upon Sakura's lips. The sudden sensation of his lips upon hers sent heat through her entire body. Sakura couldn't control herself as she suddenly wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into her with a passionate grip. The moment she did so he slipped himself between her legs so that they were now entangled.

Kakashi tasted like heaven. His lips seemed to pefectly match Sakura's as their tongues massaged eachother with nothing but warm passion. His every breath seemed to lure her in closer. Sakura felt her body instinctively flex towards Kakashi's as he rubbed his pelvis up against hers. He dug his arms under her as he brought his knees up to rub deeper. Sakura reached down and ripped off her shirt causing their lips to momentarily part, but the moment she did Kakashi sent his lips straight for her right nipple.

Having her breast sucked on was the most pleasurable thing that Sakura had ever felt. As Kakashi did so he grabbed her other breast in his hand and massaged it as he continued to thrust. When it seemed like Sakura couldn't take anymore, he stopped to give her a look that meant he was about to go further. When he saw in her eyes that he had approval, he wasted no time in making his move.

Sakura watched nervously as Kakashi pulled off her pants and underwear at the same time. Using only one hand he quickly removed his own before placing his pelvis back against hers. The feel of hair upon hair was weird and yet naughty as Sakura watched Kakashi staring at her. His face was much more handsome than she had imagined as he rubbed himself upon her. Wanting nothing but every piece of him, Sakura grabbed the bottom of his shirt and began pulling it up. Realizing that she wanted it off, Kakashi helped by removing it the rest of the way.

After throwing his shirt aside, Kakashi lowered his body back down to Sakura's so that she could feel his entire torso dominating hers. Sakura could not help but realize in that moment that she was absolutely naked, and therefore vulnerable in every aspect. Seeing her nervously blush, Kakashi came in and began kissing her once again until she became relaxed and unable to resist.

Sakura reached down to grab Kakashi's smooth penis that was now hard with excitement. As she stroked it in her hand, he slowly backed up so that he could place the tip of it on her juicy wet vagina. Sakura spread her legs wider as she guided his dick slowly into her. The warm wet sensation drove Kakashi crazy as he restrained himself in every aspect to go slow. When he finally felt his head was fully in he began to give short thrusts, and once he was in deep enough, the thrusts became long and so deep that it made Sakura arch in pleasure.

Kakashi's mind seemed to swirl in ecstasy as he pumped faster and harder, massaging himself further and further into Sakura. The walls of her vagina were so tight and wet that every sensation intensified as he pressed his body onto her. Sakura wrapped her legs over Kakashi's thighs and used it to pull him closer to her with every thrust. Her hands instinctively made its way down to Kakashi's butt and she dug her fingers into them in pleasure. Every time Kakashi came in deep, Sakura pushed her pelvis forward to try and get as much of him in her as possible.

Sakura could not control herself anymore. Her hard breathing that brushed against Kakashi's neck was now turning into uncontrollable moans. Something changed in Sakura and she needed to find an outlet to the overwhelming pleasure that she was now experiencing. Kissing Kakashi's neck, she began to suck his skin before making her way up to suck his ear. The tingling sensation that ensued caused a shock of heat to be sent straight to Kakashi's dick. He began slamming Sakura's so hard that she threw her head back in pleasure exposing her bouncing breasts to his face. Kakashi immediately began sucking her nipples sending her into a frenzy.

"I'm going to come," he breathed into her breasts.

"Please... Kakashi..."

Kakashi felt Sakura begin to stiffen with the intensity of pleasure, and he knew that she was about to come as well. He lifted her slightly off the bed and began give short pounding thrusts that seemed to push her towards the edge. Sakura felt like she was going crazy as she felt her vagina tighten around Kakashi's penis and her body clench around his every being.

An uncontrollable cry came out of Sakura's lips as she finally came. As she did so, she felt Kakashi jerk followed by a shot of warm come deep inside of her, and she tightened around him even further. Kakashi dug himself as deep into her as he could as the throbbing of his penis seemed neverending with his release. Sakura could feel his dick flicking within her and it only seemed to elongate the pleasure as her body fought the stiffness that had overtaken her.

By the time their bodies began to relax, Kakashi laid there breathing heavily into Sakura's neck as she did the same. The sheets were wet with sweat and it clung to their hair. Softly Kakashi began to lay tiny kisses upon her neck and chest. Things were never going to be the same after that, but as their minds drifted off into a deep sleep, none of the responsibilities that would come afterwards would bother them that evening.


	8. Chapter 8

Sakura awoke the next morning to find herself naked in bed. Putting a hand to her forehead she tried to stem the headache that was now searing her brain. She silently looked over to her left and found a very exhausted Kakashi still sleeping. It didn't seem that he would be waking anytime soon, so Sakura dug around for her clothes as quietly as possible before slipping into the bathroom.

It was not until the bathroom door had closed behind her that Sakura let out a deep sigh of relief. Kakashi may have been asleep, but waiting for his eyes to open felt very much akeen to waiting for an explosive note to go off. Sakura threw her clothes on the counter and let out another deep sigh. Placing her hands on the sink in thought, she then turned on the faucet so that she could fix her dehydration.

Sakura stepped into the shower and washed the bitter smell of alcohol and sweat off of her. The warm water that poured down her face and through her hair seemed to relax every muscle as it did so. She grabbed the soap and began to lather it well before washing her skin with a renewed vigor.

_Ouch! _

Sakura suddenly winced when her hand made it down to her crotch.

_... I guess I was so drunk that I didn't notice just how much it hurt... It has been a long time since I did it..._

Sakura gently washed her lower region, wincing everytime she felt a sharp sting. Though it hurt quite a bit she could only hope that there wouldn't be any infections as she undoubtedly bled at some point.

_Shit... What time is it!_

The sudden alarm as to the time was quickly washed away once Sakura set her eyes on the clock.

_Three o'clock... I'm almost supposed to be getting ready for work._

Sakura stepped out from the shower and quickly wiped herself down. She didn't want to waste time by drying her hair in case she woke up Kakashi, so she just put back on her pajamas as only then did she realize that all of her day clothes were left out on the chair.

The door creaked open and Sakura tip-toed over to the chair. Somehow she felt that if she didn't look at Kakashi then his instincts wouldn't tell him to open his eyes. Silently Sakura changed into her other clothes and grabbed her bag before making her way over to the front door. She was just about to put on her shoes when a sudden sound made her jump.

"Ahem... Is that it?" asked Kakashi.

Sakura turned around and found Kakashi sitting up in the bed. He hadn't bothered covering his face and the only thing covering his bottom was the blanket.

"Oh... Sorry," said Sakura. "I was going out to get something to eat..."

"With your work clothes?"

Sakura blushed. She had been caught.

"Come on... Let's get something to eat," said Kakashi as he grabbed the edge of the blanket.

Sakura immediately turned away as Kakashi threw back the sheets. She waited until she heard the bathroom door close behind him before clutching at her heart. She turned around and let out a tiny squeak.

"I'm still here you know..." said Kakashi once she saw him. "... I just wanted to see what you would do after I had left the room."

Sakura covered her eyes with one hand in embarrassment until Kakashi finally did enter the bathroom. She could not help but let out a nervous chuckle. She wanted nothing more than to beat the shit out of him at that moment, but somehow she just couldn't find the strength.

"Let's get some ramen..." said Kakashi as he came back out after five minutes. He quickly threw on his clothes and then nudged Sakura to walk out the door first.

Sakura felt naked as she walked ahead of Kakashi, and she knew he had made her go first on purpose. It drove her insane as she felt his eyes on her back, and she had no idea where they were looking.

Kakashi walked softly behind Sakura feeling a slight tinge of guilt and selfishness. He had no idea what he had just done but he couldn't help himself. She was just so...

_Irresistable..._

Kakashi rubbed his hands nervously through his hair. He simply had no control over himself and had in one second, sent everything that they had to hell. He certainly didn't know what he was going to do. Girls like Sakura would fall head over heels in love at the first chance they got, and to be quite honest, he just wasn't ready for the responsibility.

The walk to the nearest ramen stand seemed like a long march of uncertainty to Sakura, but as she and Kakashi both sat down to eat, the smell of the broth eliminated any care from Sakura's mind.

"Ahh... This is the cure," said Kakashi as he breathed in the smell. "I always eat this after a long night of drinking..."

"I can see why," Sakura smiled.

As Kakashi and Sakura began digging into their bowls of ramen, Sakura thought it best to keep the situation light. Afterall, it was what it was, and she didn't actually have feelings for Kakashi prior to last night's event. When she really thought about it, she had actually forced herself into taking advantage of the moment. She didn't want to scare Kakashi by seeming to become attached so she decided to just act as if nothing really had happened.

"Well, I'm off to work," said Sakura nonchalantly. "Are you coming too?"

"I've got to meet up with Sasuke first, but I'll be around shortly. I don't expect anything to really happen while I'm not there as it seems you and Goro are on good terms..."

"Got it... I'll see you later then..."

Kakashi watched as Sakura walked away. Nothing about her seemed disturbed, but then again she was shinobi and pressure was always part of the job. The whole point of really taking her out to eat was not just so that he didn't want to seem like he had left her to deal with it on her own, but also because he needed to know where she stood. Sakura was his student, and he wanted nothing more than for her not to be hurt.

* * *

The Tsubaki Bar was pretty quiet except for a few clinks of the sake cups from Takeru and Taro. Sakura sat on a stool with a far off distant look as she thumbed the edge of her notepad. It was a routine Jotaro had seen many times, and he put a cup in front of Sakura before pouring her some cold sake.

"This'll take the edge off..." he smiled. "Whatever love troubles you've got, try not to let Goro see it..."

"Hai..."

The snicker on Jotaro's face told her that he suspected something. Acting as if she had no idea what he was talking about, Sakura put the cup to her lips and ignored his little jab.

Sakura didn't know what to think. As she turned over all interactions that she had with Kakashi in the past, it slowly began to reveal that he had felt this way for some time. Once she had introduced him as being somewhat like her brother, and the sudden mention of the word "brother" seemed to cause him to look down and away. In fact, anytime that Sakura was doing or wearing something that showed more skin, he too looked away as if he was guilty for looking.

_It's all beginning to make sense... They always say that you can tell what a person is trying to hide by the way they try to hide it... It was there in front of me the entire time... He never looked at me... Wait a minute... Did he plan all of this?_

At that moment, something seemed to spark inside of Sakura as flattery took over. Kakashi had been admiring her for more than just a year. She could see in her mind's eye that he had slowly been inching himself towards her, but was always afraid to reveal himself. The whole situation made Sakura blush with such a compliment and she put her hand to her cheek as it flushed with heat.

_Could it be that I'm starting to like Kakashi-sensei too?..._

Images of Kakashi's bare face fluttered across Sakura's mind. His face was smooth and stern, and nothing short of handsome. It was the kind of face that you looked for to save you. The heroic kind. His dark deep eye seemed to pierce through the soul like a sharp sword, and the scar on his other eye was a testiment to his masculinity. It was just plain sexy. Giggling to herself, Sakura could not help but relish in the fact that she now had a secret, one that she simply couldn't tell anyone about.

The front doors opened and Shin was the first to step in as usual. Followed by him was Reo and the other underlings.

"Ten bottles," mumbled Shin. "The boss is on his way with this one's boyfriend..."

Sakura watched as Shin gave her a nasty look as he passed, but it was quickly overlooked as Reo gave an embarassed smile on the others' behalf.

"Gomen..." he whispered. It seemed that he was always apologizing for the others.

Immediately Sakura stood up and made her way around the bar to fill her tray. As Jotaro placed the last two warm bottles of sake upon it, the front doors opened again and Kabuki, Yuko and Goro came in.

"Irashaimasen," Sakura nodded while balancing her tray.

"Ah, Sakura..." began Goro. "Do you mind sitting with me for a bit?"

"Uh..."

Sakura glanced to Jotaro who gave her the okay. Considering her and Kakashi's situation, he needed to give her more time to dig for information. As he watched her take the bottles over to the table, she sat down beside Goro uneasily and crossed her legs in the other direction. Before she could even take a breath a drink had been poured for her and cups were raised.

"Kanpai," said Kabuki roughly.

"Kanpai!" everyone echoed before downing their cups. So too did Sakura with great pleasure. She wanted nothing more than for her mind to be wiped of such distractions.

"Everything alright?" asked Goro. "You downed that cup as if you were trying to wash away memories..."

"Hmm? ... No... I just needed to drink. Been working so hard..."

By the time the group had drunk twenty bottles Sakura was feeling pretty good. However, somehow the drink did not take her mind off of Kakashi, but rather intensified her feelings for him. The more she drank the more she giggled, and every thought seemed to drown her with images of Kakashi's face. Looking down at her hands she could still feel the contours of his shoulders and back, and her body ached to be touched by him again.

A nose suddenly caressed Sakura's neck. Unprepared for contact she jerked her head in alarm to find Goro looking at her with half-closed eyes gleaming with want of pleasure.

_He's drunk..._ she thought. _I'm going to be in some serious trouble if I'm not careful..._

"Let's get out of here," said Goro.

"What?" said Sakura as she suddenly pulled back. "I can't leave Jotaro here alone... He needs my help..."

"You don't want to be alone with me?"

"No, it's not that..."

Sakura looked across at Reo who looked down in regret. His eyes told her that this wasn't the first time Goro had acted this way, and it was a sure sign that whatever the outcome it was never good.

"... it's just... Well, I feel bad leaving Jotaro here to serve everyone by himself. It gets busy, you know..."

"Do you like Jotaro?" Goro asked threateningly.

"Of course not! I just happen to be a respectable girl who does not disloyaly abandon others with her work!"

"Hmph... You have nothing to worry about, my Sakura... Jotaro!"

"Hai!"

"Would you mind if I took Sakura off your hands this evening?"

A silence came across the room as even Taro and Takeru looked uneasily at Jotaro. Not knowing how to respond, Jotaro feared that if he let Sakura go then undoubtedly she'd be in some kind of trouble, but if he didn't then it would look suspicious. A quick glance over to Sakura and he had found his answer.

_Let me go..._Sakura thought as she stared directly at Jotaro. Her eyes were dead and cold as if she was saying, _I can handle it._

"Sure..." said Jotaro insecurely. "I think I can handle it..."

Sakura gave a reassuring smile as Goro nodded in pleasure.

"Do you need to stick with Kabuki this evening?" she asked.

Goro looked at Kabuki who immediately waved him off without taking his eyes off of Yuko.

"Hmph... Looks like I don't," smiled Goro as he grabbed Sakura by the hand and stood up. "Looks like it's our lucky night."

Sakura gave a nod to Jotaro as he bowed at their departure. Looking around, Sakura still didn't see Kakashi anywhere.

"Don't worry, I'll handle everything here," said Jotaro just as she went out the door.

Immediately Jotaro grabbed a warm sake bottle and walked over to Taro and Takeru's table.

"I need to ask a favor," he said as he poured them both a drink. "I need you to find Kakashi and let him know what happened to Sakura. If anyone can help her now, he can..."

Taro and Takeru nodded.

"...I'll stay here in case he shows up. Go to the Everlasting Romance Inn and ask the front desk for the room number hosting two young men around Sakura's age. Let them know what's going on and tell them to alert Kakashi right away."

"Got it," says Taro.

"Leave while I distract Kabuki's group..."

Taro and Takeru waited as Jotaro took several more bottles of sake over to Kabuki's table.

"It's on the house!" shouted Jotaro.

As the sounds of roaring laughter erupted, Taro and Takeru slipped quietly out the door and into the street. Running as quickly as their old feet could carry them, they ignored the chilly wind as they rushed past the lit stores that lined the street. By the time they reached the inn they were huffing and puffing in exhaustion but didn't slow down until they reached the front desk.

"Two... young men..." Taro breathed heavily. "What... room!"

Stunned at their pitiful state, Saori barely moved as she said, "3A..."

"3!" yelled Takeru. "Three flights of stairs!"

"Come on you old fart!" barked Taro.

The two old men were close to a heart attack by the time they reached Naruto and Sai's floor. Dragging their hands along the wall in support, Taro was the first to reach the door to knock as hard as he could. Takeru rested his back against the wall and slid down in exhaustion as the sound of voices were heard from inside.

"Nani dattebayo? Who are you?" asked Naruto as he opened the door.

Taro was so out of breath that he couldn't say anything so he just shoved his way past Naruto as Takeru crawled into the room after him.

"NANI? What do you jijis want?" asked Naruto as he shut the door behind them.

Taro and Takeru sprawled out on the floor breathing heavily as Sai suddenly came out of the bathroom.

"Hmm? Naruto, who are these men?" he asked.

"We're... Sakura's... friends..." Taro finally puffed out. "Where's... Kakashi?"

"I can't understand a thing you're saying! Here, sit up..." said Naruto as he sat them up against the wall.

"Sakura is in trouble..." explained Taro. "We... We need to find Kakashi."

"Sakura's in trouble? What kind!"

"She was forced to leave with Goro... He doesn't know who she really is, but I can tell you as an Ero-jiji that he doesn't have good intentions..."

"Why that sukebe!" growled Naruto. "I'll kill him if he puts one hand on Sakura-chan!"

"Please remain here as long as you'd like," said Sai. "We'll take care of the rest..."

Sai and Naruto put on their gear with lightning speed and left the two old men in their room. As the door closed behind them, Taro and Takeru immediately passed out where they lay and would not get up for several more hours.

* * *

Kakashi leaned against a tree in the forest just outside of the village. He had been waiting for almost two hours now, and his stomach turned in anxiousness as it was unlike Sasuke to be this late. What may have been bothering him more however was the fact that he had left Sakura alone for so long. He was pretty sure nothing bad was going to happen, but somehow he had a gut feeling that something wasn't right.

The cold night air that chilled the forest made Kakashi cross his arms tighter. In the distance he could hear the sounds of the villagers' voices as they walked about after work. The smell of cooking meat began to mix with the sake-filled air, and Kakashi was beginning to get more and more hungry by the minute. As he looked out into the darkness he didn't feel anything threatening, but the knot in is stomach did not seem disipate. Something was definitely wrong.

"Kakashi..." came a deep voice. "Gomen, but I had to take care of something."

"Everything alright?"

"My team's getting restless with the lack of progress and tempers are beginning to flare more than usual. I also had a situation with Juugo too..."

"Well, I'm sure you'll be relieved when I tell you that we may have found whose been pulling the strings. A politician by the name of Tanaka Shinji has a son in Kabuki's group. Though we know that they are working together, we don't think that Kabuki's group is aware of the close relation. We're thinking that Tanaka is setting it up so that his son can take over."

"If that's true then how did the shinobi who attacked us know about our coming? They're from our side of town..."

"That's what's been bothering me for a while but then again, if I was Kabuki then I would've tipped off the other side so that they could fight my battles for me instead. Why bother wasting is own men?"

"Mmm... Sounds like the logical thing to do... How's your unit doing?"

Kakashi had to do a double-take as the comment took a double meaning. Shaking it off he quickly recovered.

"Well, so far so good. Naruto and Sai have remained out of trouble but Sakura is inching closer and closer to danger... I'm not sure what Goro will try to do next. He's moving on her faster than anticipated, and we've already had a close call."

"..."

Kakashi watched Sasuke very closely. Though Sasuke's facial expressions didn't change, his eyes had a small hint of worry as he knew that Sasuke held feelings for Sakura. Looking down at the ground, Kakashi somehow felt better knowing that he had beaten Sasuke to the punch.

"Kakashi-sensei!" rang a voice through the trees.

Before Kakashi and Sasuke could turn Sai had landed before them. Ignoring Naruto's blind call into the forest, Sai took the opportunity to alert them of the situation before he found them.

"Where did he take her?" asked Kakashi.

"We're not sure..."

"Why didn't one of you take initiative and pick up the trail?" glared Sasuke.

Naruto landed right smack in the middle of them and began blurting out what had happened at top speed.

"... Naruto would have made a spectacle trying to find them," explained Sai. "... And he would have taken forever to find you."

The smile that Sai gave made Sasuke think he was angry that he had even asked. Still, it didn't matter as he now saw that Sai was right in his reasoning.

"Baka..." said Sasuke as he looked over to a frantic Naruto.

"Hai, Hai..." said Kakashi. "We'll head back to the bar and track them from there."

"I've got a quicker way," said Sai suddenly unrolling a scroll holding up two fingers. "Ninpo..."

Five black crows peeled themselves off the paper before taking flight. They flew up through the tops of the trees before spacing out into a line that flew over the village. As the group waited below, a silence overtook them as they were all on edge.

Though Naruto was silent, he looked like he was ready to pounce as he stood with his fists balled as tightly as possible. Kakashi's hands were in his pockets but he was no longer leaning against the tree. Sasuke kept his eyes on Sai who in turn had his own on the sky above. The air about Sai was so calm and collecting as he patiently awaited the return of his scouts, and somehow it just seemed to put Naruto even more on edge.

A crow suddenly landed in front of Sai with a caw before dissipating into ink.

"Northeast..." said Sai as he took off to lead the way.

"Remember Naruto, we're just going to check on her first. Don't go barging in or you'll blow her cover," warned Kakashi.

Sasuke and Kakashi looked over when they didn't hear an answer. Naruto had an angry look on his face but didn't seem to want to acknowlege what was said. It was hard to though, especially since it seemed to be a recurring habit that everyone seemed to be anticipating his irrationality, and it made him mad because they were possibly right.


	9. Chapter 9

"Where are we going?" Sakura asked as she looked hesitantly back down the street towards the bar. Ahead of her was Goro pulling her by the hand.

"Don't you worry," said Goro. "I always take care of my girl."

The sound of that last sentence made Sakura uneasy. Whatever it was that Goro was expecting from her, it sure as hell wasn't good. Thinking that it was best to seem at ease she tried her best to keep her head forward and her attention on Goro's intentions.

"I've never been down this way," said Sakura, fishing for clues as to where they were going.

"I'm taking you to someplace special... Not many people have been fortunate to know of it."

"Really?... I guess I'm lucky."

Sakura began memorizing the streets they were passing so that she was sure she could find her way back if need be. The entire village was a complete labyrinth of warehouses that all looked the same, and no one but the local workers knew the different shades of the buildings.

"Ouch!" squeeked Sakura as she suddenly pulled Goro to a hault. "There's a sharp rock that got into my sandal..."

Sakura tried her best to stall them but was stunned when Goro immediately picked her up and walked over to a crate so that he could sit her down for an inspection. She watched as he delicately removed her sandal and blew out any remaining rocks. As he slipped the sandal back onto her foot, he rubbed up the inner part of her calf until he reached her knee before leaning in for a kiss. Stunned, Sakura could do nothing but blush as it was the first time that he had kissed her.

_Boy this is some record... Kissed by two men in two days!_

"Come on... Let's get you inside..." whispered Goro.

Sakura remained dragging behind Goro for another ten minutes before they finally reached a more suburban area. From the looks of it, it was another rich part of town. As they walked up to one of the homes Sakura noticed that this one in particular did not have a name outside the door.

"This is it... My home," said Goro as he opened the gate.

Sakura stepped inside to find herself in a beautiful garden. It was a new home made with an old-fashioned aesthetic, and the choi pond seemed to complete the Yakuza setting somehow.

"This is your home?" marvelled Sakura. "Sugoi..."

Goro slid back the front shouji doors with such a force that it nearly popped it out of its sockets. He quickly led Sakura into a back room where tatami mats lined the floor. At the center of it was undoubtedly Goro's bed.

"Don't you think you're moving a bit... fast?" asked Sakura.

Goro moved closely into Sakura so that she could feel his heavy breathing.

"Sakura... I want you more than anything else in the world right now. There is nothing I wouldn't give you if you stayed with me..."

Sakura didn't really have time to respond as suddenly Goro came in and grabbed her head with both hands so that he could kiss her passionately on the lips. Unsure of what to do, Sakura could only kiss back to buy herself some time. She didn't know if she could push her way out of it and she couldn't even fathom blowing her cover. However, as things got heated pretty damn quick, she was about to find that the decision would be made for her.

Goro's hands reached around to the back of Sakura's dress. Grabbing at the zipper he became impatient and ripped it apart. He began tugging down her dress so that soon her bra was exposed. Peeling back a moment, Goro took the time to admire her lacy black bra.

"Nice," he whispered as he then came back in to deal kisses upon Sakura's neck and shoulders.

"Hey! Wait a minute!" she pleaded.

Before she knew it, Sakura was suddenly thrown down upon the bed with Goro's weight on top of her. He just wasn't getting it.

"I said wait!" yelled Sakura as she shoved him off of her. Sitting up she turned to look at a stunned Goro. "Now look! I don't know what kind of girl you think I am, but you can't just throw yourself on me!"

Sakura glared at Goro. Though it was an act, the protest definitely wasn't. Having an over-heated man charging at you was not an ideal second date for anyone.

"You're right... I'm sorry, Sakura... I'm sorry..."

Sakura sighed in relief. At last Goro had stopped to take a moment to think about his actions, but his version of making it up to Sakura was somewhat different from hers.

Goro slowly moved across the bed and began tenderly kissing Sakura's cheeks.

"I'm sorry," he repeatedly whispered. "I didn't mean to come on so strong..."

Soon the kissing made its way to Sakura's lips and she had no choice but to kiss Goro back. Her eyes were wide open as his hand went up to her neck to softly thread his fingers into her hair. The kisses, though slow, became deeper and more passionate as he slowly laid Sakura on her back. As his heated breaths enveloped her chest, Sakura shut her eyes and tried to go with it. Somehow though, it felt entirely wrong, as if what Goro was touching belonged to someone else.

Kakashi's face floated in Sakura's mind as she tried to push these thoughts away. Trying hard to ignore them, she didn't notice that Goro was slowly removing his kimono. Effortlessly he reached for Sakura's arms to place them around his neck. The smoothness of his bareback didn't even alert Sakura as she fought hard to restrain her thoughts of Kakashi. She didn't even really feel it as Goro slyly began to lift the sides of Sakura's dress. When it hit her hips, she immediately awoke to the danger and opened her eyes to find that her dress only covered her waist.

"Don't worry, I'll be gentle..." whispered Goro.

"No! Goro! Stop it!"

"It'll be fine. Don't worry... I won't hurt you Sakura..."

Sakura put her hands on Goro's chest but he soon grabbed her by the wrists and pinned them down beside her head.

"Get off of me," warned Sakura.

"It's that Jotaro, isn't it?" asked Goro. "You love him, don't you?"

"What? You're drunk!"

Goro dived in and began kissing Sakura's neck hard.

"Get off of me!" she shouted and kicked.

"You're not going anywhere..." said Goro maliciously. "You're mine now..."

"Last chance!" seethed Sakura as she with her true strength bucked Goro right off the bed.

Goro was sent flying backwards with such a force that he slid back across the room and hit the wall. Sakura pulled back up her dress only to have it fall back down because of the broken zipper. Sakura jumped off the bed and flew open the shouji doors. She moved into the backyard to make a quick getaway instead of going back into a house she didn't know. What she wasn't expecting however, was an ambush.

Five shinobi looked down from the trees in the backyard. It didn't seem that they were expecting her, but the moment she came bursting into the open they were aware that something wasn't right.

Goro came bursting forth from the house in a fury. It was too late to pretend that she was still his girlfriend, so deciding that they had all the information they needed on the Yakuza, Sakura wasn't going to hold back anymore punches. Turning around she dodged Goro as he tried to grab her. Getting a hold of his wrist she swung him around and threw him back into the house. The sheer force she used was enough to surprise everyone watching, but it was the shuriken scars on her back that awoke everyone to her status.

Sakura dodged to her right as she suddenly heard shuriken flying her way. Following the edges of the wall she cut back around to take care of whomever she could. The first punch she landed was on a huge shinobi who threw up his palms to stop her tiny fist. What no one was expecting was the mass of concentrated chakura that sent him flying backwards through a tree and into the wall of the compound. Stunned as to their strong adversary, the remaining shinobi began to space themselves out to fight her at a distance.

"So... You're shinobi, huh?" said Goro as he came back outside. "No wonder I liked you..."

"Eat shit," growled Sakura.

Wasting no time, Sakura bolted forward and began swinging at the nearest shinobi. She grabbed his kimono and threw him at the next one before dodging more shuriken. Goro immediately stepped in and began attacking her as she tried to dodge the others. Hoping to lessen the load she landed a kick to another shinobi that sent him packing like the first. With four attackers left, she found that they remained for good reason.

Goro was an exceptional shinobi. His movements were completely void of excess movement, and his speed was a bit quicker than Sakura's. As she parried his attacks as best as she could, she soon found that he had managed to keep her busy enough to let the other three flank her on all sides. Things were beginning to look bleak as Sakura suddenly felt the need to turn her back to Goro.

The shinobi at Sakura's back was about to grab her from behind but she turned just in time to duck beneath his grasp to kick him and move away from all four of them. Seeing as there was no way to fight her one by one, Goro and the others charged at her with full force but were blown back when she made contact with the first person that tried to touch her.

"Alright... It seems I have to pull out the stops," said Goro. "Back up..."

Sakura watched Goro throw together hand signals that began to flood the air with a heavy mist. She kept her eyes on the other three until they completely disappeared from view. Sakura crouched down and pulled two shuriken off the ground before bringing them up into a defensive position. Silently she waited for the sound of shuriken flying her way and she deflected them as soon as they appeared.

"Pretty good..." came Goro's voice. "... But how good are you with more?"

Sakura dodged three more shuriken before rolling to the left as more were sent flying her way. As soon as she got back onto her feet a shinobi slashed at her from the mist. Sakura threw her weight on him and tackled him to the ground to keep him from getting away. She slit his throat as soon as she got the chance and crawled back into the dark before another could attack.

"Too late," came Goro's voice from behind Sakura.

Before Sakura could even turn she heard the sharp clash of metal against metal. Whipping around she found two kunai locked in combat with a single red Sharingan glaring in the mist. Sakura heard a shriek of pain as a shinobi well away from her met his death by what must have been Sasuke's long sword. The sharp glint of his blade was unmistakable. Two more shrieks told her that Sai and Naruto must have made it too as soon a blonde head could be seen emerging from the shadows.

"Kakashi-sensei..." whispered Sakura.

"Are you okay?" he asked, still locked with Goro.

"Hai!"

"So... The patron from the bar, eh?" said Goro. "Well, at least I got to taste your sweet lips... Right, Sakura-chan?"

Kakashi immediately ripped his blade away and grabbed Goro's wrist before jamming his own right into Goro's neck. The blood that gurgled from Goro's lips seemed to laugh at Sakura's loss. Though she hadn't done anything further than be groped by him, nevertheless it still made her feel just as dirty as if he had done something more.

"Let's go," said Kakashi-sensei as he didn't even turn around to look at her.

As the team escaped the compounds, Sakura could not help but feel sad as Kakashi undoubtedly ignored her so that no one would suspect anything. That sadness on top of the horrible feeling of having been touched inappropriately just seemed to burn her. Wanting to cry, she shook off the urge to as she still had to face a long list of questions once they stopped.

When Kakashi decided that they had made it far enough into the woods, he brought the team to a halt in a tiny opening in the trees so that the moon afforded some light. He tried to remain nonchalant as he slowly began to turn back towards the others, but suddenly found his heart ripped right from his chest.

Sakura's appearance was nothing less than pitiful. The top of her dress was drooping around her waist and her bra was exposed. Her hair was ratty with dried blood sticking it to her face, and though she had no tears, her eyes were full of a deepest sorrow that sunk everyone's hearts.

Sakura watched as everyone looked away as she slowly reached down to lift the top of her dress back up. She crossed her arms and pressed the dress to her heart. She wanted nothing more than to be invisible at that moment.

"Gomen..." she whispered. It was all she could say.

"It's not your fault..." said Naruto. "You trusted us to look out for you as you did your job. It's our fault..."

Sakura looked down at the ground to keep the moon from shining on the tears that now welled in her eyes. Gravity however sent them dripping down to the earth in a silent rain.

"Here..." said Naruto as he quickly took off his jacket and threw it around her.

"Arigatou... Aren't you going to ask me what happened?"

"No," said Kakashi suddenly. "We knew this was going to happen eventually. It just happened in the moment that I wasn't looking."

"Gomen..." Sakura repeated.

"Sakura, it's not your fault!" said Naruto.

Grabbing the collar of his jacket he pulled the jacket tightly around Sakura before throwing his arms around her in a protective embrace. As he squeezed her tightly to him he could feel her tiny sobs growing ever stronger as she tried her best to muffle them out.

"Come on... Let's go home, ne?" asked Naruto. "Sai will distract Saori while we move you upstairs... Right, Sai?"

"Hai!" Sai smiled.

"I've got to head back..." said Sasuke. "My team should be coming back to the inn any moment now... Let's meet tomorrow night to see what kind of repurcussions happened in the time being."

As Sasuke was about to leave, his eyes lingered on Sakura until she looked up at him to give him a reassuring smile. Nodding to her, he then turned to take his leave.

* * *

The walk back to the inn seemed to take forever as Sakura and the others dodged in and out of the shadows to get her home without being seen. Sai successfully managed to get Saori away from the counter by asking for a few towels which gave the rest of them time to sneak up the stairs without being seen. As the cold stairs stung the bottom of Sakura's feet she tip-toed in silent steps until having finally reached her floor.

"Arigatou, Naruto..." she said one last time as she slipped into the room with Kakashi. "I'll give your jacket back as soon as it's cleaned."

"Don't worry. Take your time. Goodnight, Sakura-chan."

"Goodnight, Naruto-kun."

As soon as the door shut, Sakura avoided making eye-contact with Kakashi and made her way straight to the bathroom. She jumped into the shower and washed every part of her body twice before deciding to do a third time over. When she finally emerged from the bathroom she quickly heard the bathroom door shut as Kakashi went in for his turn to leave her in privacy to dress.

Sakura seemed to be unable to think straight as she searched for her pajamas. She put her top on before she put on her bottom which was unusual for her routine. Stopping for a moment to make sure that she had even put a panty on, she then slipped quietly into bed and shut off the light to face towards the window.

The door to the bathroom opened and Sakura watched the light disappear as Kakashi turned the switch off. She could sense him getting into the bed and she pulled the sheets tighter around her as she felt him slip in. As tired as she was, she wanted nothing more than for his arms to be wrapped around her in protection. Still, she didn't quite know how to ask for such a thing.

Ten minutes rolled by and Sakura spent every second of it debating what to do. Mustering the courage to make a move, she inched over to Kakashi's side and placed her head upon his chest with a small rub of her hand. She wasn't expecting his arms to be up around his head, so it made his chest puff out uncomfortably. When ten seconds passed and he didn't put his arms down around her, she figured he was sleeping and moved back to her side of the bed quietly.

Saddened by her ill-fated attempt at comfort, Sakura shut her tired eyes and began to drift off. She was well into sleep when she suddenly felt an arm drop on the pillow above her and slide down to tap her on the head. Instinctively she knew that this was Kakashi's way of welcoming her. Picking herself up she moved back towards him to once again place her head upon his chest. Kakashi's arm wrapped around her neck and tugged her a bit harshly into him. He had given into her.

Kakashi looked down at the bushy head upon his chest whose arm now wrapped itself firmly around his waist. He wanted so much to caress Sakura in a loving manner, but somehow he felt too strong to give into such a pleasure. He didn't want to lead her on, but he didn't want to let her go either. He was so worried about her earlier that it made him furious, which was partially why he couldn't look at her for the first part of the evening. Never before had someone ever had such a hold on his heart, and it was a new feeling for a man who was always in control. Nevertheless, all he wanted do in that moment was relish her being safely back in his arms, and cherish her tiny body against his. Slowly shutting his eyes, Kakashi lifted his other hand and took Sakura's up in his. Softly he stroked it with his thumb, and held it to his heart for the rest of the night.


	10. Chapter 10

Sakura awoke the next morning with the sun on her face. Slowly she began to remember the events that transpired the night before and it made her stomach sink backwards with grief. Though everything was okay now, she still felt embarrassed by the whole thing and wished for it all to have been a dream. Thinking that she was probably alone in bed, she was nervous to suddenly hear the soft snores of Kakashi next to her.

The exhaustion and anxiousness from last night was evident on Kakashi's sleeping face. Though his arms laid dead above his head, he somehow seemed worried as his chest rose and fell with fatigue. Sakura sought to take the opportunity to snuggle in and quietly moved closer until she could press her face against the side of his ribs. She threw her arm over his waist and squeezed him tenderly to herself.

The sudden contact made Kakashi uneasy and he instinctively turned on his side to put his back to her. He definitely wasn't a morning person, and the shunned expression he just gave Sakura left her quite taken aback. Not sure as to what to do next, Sakura moved back to her side and faced the window instead.

"Maguro..." she whispered.

"Maguro" was a frequent term used on Japanese men like Kakashi, meaning that they were like a cold fish. They didn't like to be cuddled and hardly showed expression. Sakura understood that this was something most shinobi men were, but nevertheless it still hurt as she undoubtedly yearned for some loving attention. If anything, she desperately needed it.

Sakura peeled herself off of the bed and looked at the time. It was almost three o'clock and the bar was opening in a few hours. She didn't know whether Kakashi wanted her to keep her position as bar maid, but she certainly couldn't leave Jotaro guessing as to whether she was dead or alive. So, she stood up and walked over to the chair to slip on her clothes before walking into the bathroom. The moment she entered however left her stunned when she found her black dress still on the floor.

The painful memories of the night before flooded Sakura's mind like a tide that sunk her heart. Goro's blood-stricken face flashed before her mind's eye as she looked upon the blood stains on her dress. The zippers were still broken and the material still reeked of sake. Not caring if she had to work that night, Sakura picked up the dress and threw it into the trash. She tied a knot on the bag and immediately washed her hands. Though she was hungry, she marched straight out of the bathroom and out of her assigned room. She marched down the stairs and didn't stop until she had thrown the bag away in a trash receptacle across the street.

"Are you alright?" came a voice from behind her.

Turning around, Sakura found Kakashi standing right behind her in his tight black shirt and boxers. He was in such a hurry to chase after her that he hadn't even bothered throwing on some pants.

"Oh my God! Get back inside!" Sakura yelled as she threw her hands into the air. Shoving with all of her might, she shoo-ed a groggy Kakashi back into the inn and up the stairs.

"I guess this means you're fine?" he asked as she continued pushing all the way up to their door.

Sakura didn't answer until she had successfully shoved him into the room and shut the door behind them. Immediately she threw her arms around his waist and hid her face in his chest. Kakashi stood there stunned at the scene and needed a moment to collect his thoughts before deciding to wrap his arms around her as well.

"You okay?" he asked hesitantly.

Sakura shook her head.

"Well, let's get dressed and head over to the bar. I'm sure Jotaro wants to know you're okay..."

"Hai..."

Kakashi put on his clothes as Sakura sat patiently on the bed. She stared out the window before her and daydreamed of all the scenarios they were about to face. It seemed that things took a quicker turn just when they had thought they were going nowhere, and somehow it seemed that they would be leaving soon. In truth, Sakura didn't want this trip to end. Nobody in the village really knew who they were and every night since they had arrived she had got to sleep beside Kakashi. She still wasn't sure as to how much she liked him, but slowly and surely the idea of being with someone like him appealed to her more and more. Afterall, he was just about the perfect man for her in every way. Atleast, she thought he was.

"Ready?" he asked as he suddenly opened the front door.

Sakura pulled out of her trance and followed Kakashi down the hall. Her daydream seemed to follow her as they eventually made it out into the streets. The hot summer sun still beat down with a piercing gaze, but again Sakura found herself ignoring this fact as she marched silently beside Kakashi.

"So I guess I'm leaving my job..." said Sakura. "No point in staying now, is there?"

"No... I suppose not," answered Kakashi. "I want to make sure of something though..."

"What?"

"Something doesn't seem right... We killed Kabuki's right hand man but I don't think that changes anything. Things are moving much too quickly... It's almost like the solution is too easy..."

"I agree... Killing Goro won't stop Tanaka Shinji from trying to put Shin on top, and it won't stop the two Yakuza groups from fighting."

"That's not what I mean..." said Kakashi.

"Huh?"

"Goro was a pretty skillful shinobi, but he didn't seem to be the type to follow a petty Yakuza boss... I think there's a stronger shinobi involved..."

"Who do you think it is?"

"Well... Being that rogue shinobi tend to stick with others like them from the same village, I would say we're looking for another shinobi from Kirigakure."

"Do you think it's Kabuki?" asked Sakura.

"No... The moment I saw Kabuki I knew he wasn't shinobi. The tattoos were from an old Yakuza clan that wears them as a sign of inheritance... He was born into a Yakuza family. The person we're looking for remains well hidden..."

"The only person left that I can think of is Tanaka Shinji himself, but he was born and raised in this village. There's no way his son could have become a shinobi in the time that he was gone."

"I know... and that's what bothers me..."

The doors to the Tsubaki Bar were open as Sakura and Kakashi finally approached them. From outside they could see Jotaro's shadow as he moved about mopping the floors. When he heard their footsteps he stopped and smiled at having found an answer to his worries.

"Sakura-san!" he exclaimed as she walked in. "You're okay! Thank Kami!"

Sakura beamed and immediately began putting the stools up on the bar.

"For heaven's sake don't worry about that! Come on! Let's sit and chat about what the hell happened last night as I've barely slept a wink since you had left! Now, what happened?"

Kakashi and Sakura sat down in the back booth and began recounting the story to Jotaro. Though Sakura left most of the scandalous events out, Jotaro's face showed that he was reading between the lines. As he sat there fiddling with the end of his mop, his face seemed to scrunch more and more with worry as he knew that it wasn't over.

"You know... There's something I'd like to tell you..." said Jotaro as he sat down at the end. "After you had left, Kabuki commented to his underlings that Goro was taking out the trash... Something told me he may have already known who you were."

Sakura and Kakashi looked at eachother in shock. It seemed that everything was beginning to make sense. The only reason why Goro got her out of the bar so quickly was to corner her while Kakashi was gone. The shinobi waiting in the trees were there not just to hang out, but because they were waiting to attack her. Fortunately they underestimated just how strong she was.

"If that's the case," said Sakura. "...then the shinobi waiting for me at the inn just wanted to know what room we were in... But... we only told two people where we were staying before that first night I started working here..."

A silence fell upon the three as they tried to work out who could have known.

"Wait... What about your ojiisan's helper?" asked Sakura.

"You mean, Wataru? What about him?" said Jotaro. "He's harmless..."

"How long has he been with your family?" asked Kakashi.

"Maybe a year or two? I'm not sure. My grandpa just kind of showed up with him one day... He seems loyal enough, but I don't know how he came to work with ojiisan. You don't think he's an informant, do you?"

"When we arrived in Sake, the only person we told where we were staying was Mamoru. The only other person who had information between that time and the time that Sakura had someone waiting for her at the inn was you and him. At first we thought that it was Yakuza knowledge that brought the shinobi to wait for Sakura. But then again, if it wasn't, then the only other person who could have overheard was Wataru."

"We should check it out then..." said Sakura. "But we'll need to get Mamoru to safety first."

"I'm coming too then... I want to make sure he's alright, just in case."

* * *

Walking through the streets on the more wealthy side of town was like being in a different dimension. It was completely different from the warehouse area with evenly paved roads and high white walls that had trees peeking out from behind them. Sakura relished in the cooler temperatures as she listened to the wind brush the trees with a gentle force. The bitter smell of sake seemed thinner as it mixed with the flora and fauna, and it's softer tones seemed to caress her with the peace she had been looking for.

"Nice, isn't it," said Jotaro quietly. "Though my family rarely came to visit my grandfather, it was always a treat to walk down these streets as a child... My cousin and I would just sit in the garden all day without playing roughly like how we'd normally do. Something about this place just discouraged that kind of activity..."

Sakura smiled as she looked upon Jotaro's reminiscent features. She could tell that he was living those moments even as he continued walking beside her silently, and it made her think how nice it must have been to have a normal childhood. Afterall, growing up in an environment where children are taught to have killer instincts was not easy.

The group continued walking down the street, and though their clothes indicated that they were clearly not from this area it didn't seem to put them on edge as they blatantly walked in the sunlight.

"You stay here and I'll bring my grandfather out," said Jotaro once they reached Mamoru's front gate. "I'll just lure him out for a walk and then you can take over from there."

"Sounds good," said Kakashi.

Sakura and Kakashi waited out of sight as Jotaro rang the front gate. As they waited and listened for footsteps from inside, a minute passed before they all became suspicious.

Jotaro's brow furrowed with worry as he peeked through the gate into the yard. Things were much too quiet for his liking, but thinking that perhaps the maids were tied up with their work, he tugged at the gate only to find it unlocked. As a precaution Jotaro signaled to Sakura and Kakashi to follow him before stepping in first.

"Wait..." said Kakashi quietly. "You should let us go fir..."

"Ojiisan!" Jotaro yelled suddenly.

Sakura watched as Jotaro suddenly took off towards the left corner of the patio that wrapped around the house. Her eyes followed his back until she saw a glimpse of a wrinkled hand that was attached to a tiny frame. The moment she saw the pool of blood that it lay in, she immediately cupped her hands to her mouth and stifled a gasp.

"Ojiisan," Jotaro began to sob as he kneeled down beside the body of his grandfather. "Ojiisan... "

Jotaro's face began to crumple as hot tears began streaming down his cheeks. Gasping for air, he slowly lowered his shaking hands onto his grandfather's kimono before pulling them back to cover his grief stricken face. His shoulders curled in sorrow and it felt like his whole world was on fire. Feeling as if he was going to suffocate, he shut his eyes as tightly as he could and dug his nails into his scalp to fight the pain.

"Ojiisan... Ojiisan..."

Uncontrollable sobs burst forth and Jotaro's body slumped beside his grandfather's. Who or what could have ever done such a thing to a helpless old man was unfathomable.

"He had bad knees..." Jotaro whispered as if trying to reason for mercy. "He couldn't run away..."

Kakashi stood silently as Sakura took action. She walked up to Jotaro and hooked her arms beneath his to pull him away from the sight. His body was heavy with grief as she tried her best to lift him away. When she finally felt him moving on his own, Sakura stood back and tried to keep her tears from spilling.

The sound of dragging footsteps came from around the corner and everyone took a defensive position. When they heard the soft cries of someone else they eased up as Wataru peeked his head around the corner. His face and eyes were swollen from crying, but when his vision cleared and he saw Jotaro standing before him, he stopped breathing.

"You bastard!" yelled Jotaro suddenly.

Lunging forward Jotaro grabbed Wataru by the collar and made him fall to his knees.

"YOU KILLED HIM!" Jotaro screamed. "YOU TRAITOR!"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Wataru sobbed uncontrollably. "... They threatened to kill my family..."

Jotaro threw Wataru to the ground and kicked him off the porch. Sakura leapt forward and restrained Jotaro as Wataru cowered in a ball before them. Unable to speak anymore, Jotaro just stood there glaring at him. Though his family had been threatened, Jotaro still could not help but blame him for his grandfather's death.

"I can't believe they let you live..." said Jotaro.

Wataru clenched his head into his hands and rocked back and forth in guilt. In truth, he wished that he himself had been killed.

"Jotaro stop..." said Sakura. "Can't you see that they let him live not out of payment for his help, but out of cruelty so that he could carry this guilt. Whoever did this truly had no heart... They preyed on his family as they did on yours. Forgive him..."

Jotaro gave a yell and walked back towards the gate. Crouching down against the wall he hid his head in his hands because he just couldn't stand it. Even though it was true, he just couldn't fathom it at the moment.

"Kakashi..." came a voice from within the house.

"Hmm? Sasuke?"

"There's something we need to discuss. My team is waiting at the rendezvous point. Naruto and Sai are on their way..."

"I'll be right there..." said Sakura as she looked at Jotaro and Wataru.

Kakashi nodded and followed Sasuke to the back yard before hopping the fence into the woods.

"What's this about?" asked Kakashi as they made their ways through the trees.

"We have a problem..."

* * *

By the time Sakura got to the rendezvous point Sai and Naruto had already arrived. Looking around in bewilderment, she found that the entirety of Sasuke's team was there too.

"What's going on?" asked Sakura as she looked over the group.

Sasuke sat with his eyes closed and his back against a tree. Once he heard her footsteps come to a halt, he opened his eyes and sighed in irritation.

"Karin," he spoke. "Are we clear?"

"Yes. No one within earshot."

"Good... Well, the reason why I've pulled my team out is because we are no longer looking at two separate Yakuza groups. I was attacked by a couple of shinobi on our end of town and they were definitely not from Kumogakure... Not unless shinobi from Kumogakure adopted any water techniques specific to Kirigakure. It seems that these shinobi were not actually working against one another. What's more is that the leader of the Yakuza group that we've been following has now been killed..."

"Then that's it... It all fits..." said Sai suddenly. "Naruto and I have just received word that Kabuki has been killed as well."

"What?" said Sakura. "How? When?"

"Just this morning... We heard it being whispered at the marketplace."

"Then trying to take Sakura out last night was just the beginning," said Kakashi. "The order to take out anyone standing in the way must have gone out yesterday."

"But why wait so long for Konoha to notice?"asked Suigetsu.

"I don't think it was their intention. Taking over a trade as big as the sake trade requires a whole wealth of knowledge of the system and its politics. It takes time to acquire all of that. If rogue shinobi took over this village then Konoha would have been up in arms. They'd have to do it under the guise that they were Yakuza, so taking over the Yakuza's system that was already in place would have been the most easiest and obvious step for their goal. We just caught it during their little turf wars."

"Why create a turf war?"

"Yakuza are tightly knit and aren't keen on letting newcomers into the higher ranks of their groups. If the shinobi wanted to really learn about the trade then they'd have to get in first. So, they created the turf war as a distraction and a tool to get their people in without being noticed. It seems that now that they've got both systems of the two controlling Yakuza groups worked out, all their shinobi have to do is control the lower-ranked Yakuza who are already in place."

"Now that the situation has changed," said Sakura. "We'll have to notify Tsunade-sama before we can move."

"No... I am afraid that if we leave now the grip on the village will be too tight to get it back without civilian casualties. Strategically speaking, if we take them out now we have a chance to do it without anymore innocents getting hurt."

"So... I guess the question now is, 'Who's controlling them?'" said Naruto.

"I know someone we can ask..." said Sakura. "I just hope he's willing to let it slip."

* * *

"Hi Reo..." said Sakura.

Looking up from his bowl of ramen, Reo's face clearly showed surprise when he saw Sakura looking back at him. His eyes then slowly turned downward in guilt before he silently went back to his meal.

Sakura moved to sit on the stool on Reo's left as another customer slurped his ramen noisily on his right. Resting her tired arms on the tabletop, she signaled to the man behind the counter.

"A Mabo Tofu Ramen, please..." she said.

"What do you want?" asked Reo between slurps.

"Well, I want to know who took out Kabuki," asked Sakura. "I also want to know who it is that just took over his group..."

"How should I know..."

A silence passed between them as the clerk came back to place a bowl of ramen before Sakura. The spicy red broth peppered with chili flakes seemed to almost gurgle with heat. Leaning forward to smell the spices, Sakura smiled at her first real meal of the day. Picking up her hashi in her right and a spoon in her left, she paused to plea for an answer.

"Look, Reo... I know that you're in a tight bind. Being that you're still alive means that whomever killed Kabuki decided that you were not a threat and maybe even worth keeping. Going against someone as strong as they are could definitely get you killed, but hear what I have to say first... You've lived here all of your life, haven't you?"

Reo went silent as Sakura grabbed a few strands of ramen with the tips of her hashi before trying to curl them onto her broth-filled spoon. Blowing the steam away from her, she gently tested its temperature with the tip of her tongue before proceeding to place it in her mouth.

"... You have to take into consideration as to what will happen now that this group has invaded your village..." she began again. "Now that we, the shinobi of Konohagakure, know that a rogue group from Kirigakure has crossed into the Land of Fire, it will not be long before the Daimyo hires us to clean out this place from violent extortionists. You and your village are about to be caught in the midst of a battle. Who in the end do you think will win?"

Reo paused in his eating and looked as if he was going to be sick.

"... Your whole village, caught in a war..." Sakura went on. "It might have worked if the rogue shinobi were never found out... However, that's just not the case and I am afraid that the battle will probably tear Sake apart and push back its economical progress. Everyone will suffer both physically and financially for years to come and you will see the home that you love so dearly fall apart right before your eyes."

Reo put down his chopsticks and put his head in his hands. It seemed that the reality was beginning to be too much to bear.

"... I am not telling you this to be mean..." said Sakura. "I am telling you this because I know how much you love this place. I can see it in your eyes... I don't know for what reasons you joined the Yakuza in the first place, but I know that out of everyone I've seen from Kabuki's group, you are genuinely a nice person..."

Sakura watched as Reo's eyes flickered back and forth in thought. She saw a panicked look in his features but was surprised to suddenly see a stern look come across his face.

"I... I don't know what you're talking about," Reo responded and began to stand up.

Suddenly the customer on Reo's right put a heavy arm around his shoulders and made him drop back down on his stool.

"Look, pal, we can do this the easy way or the hard way..."

"Naruto!" scolded Sakura. Turning to Reo she waited until he looked into her eyes. "Reo... Please... We can take care of this before it blows up, but we need your help. We can stop this before it turns into a war... You can save the villagers..."

Reo suddenly shrugged Naruto's arm off his shoulders and stood up.

"Oh yeah?" he said. "What have the villagers ever done for me? I lived here all of my life and when my parents died, no one would give me work. Sure I was a rascal, but did that mean it was okay to leave me on my own? I was only thirteen... Leaving me alone like that was just as good as abandonment..."

"So what? I've had a whole village against me since the day I was born. They avoided me, cursed at me, bullied me, even beat me... You think you've got it bad?"said Naruto suddenly taking personal offense. He reached over and grabbed Reo by the collar. "You don't know what abandonment is..."

Looking into Naruto's eyes at that moment was like looking into a whole new world of pain. The intensity of his energy and the severity of hurt in his eyes made Reo shrink in shame, and he thought that whatever it was that Naruto had gone through was something far worse than what Reo could have ever experienced.

Naruto released Reo from his grip and looked away. If there was anything he couldn't stand, it was self-pity. In that moment he could feel Sakura and Reo's eyes upon his back like a low heat and it made him curdle with anger.

"Don't pity me," he said. "Don't you dare..."

Sakura immediately took her eyes off of Naruto and turned to Reo.

"Look... You can save a whole lot more children from going through what you did. Did you ever think of that?" asked Sakura. "You have the chance to save so many lives right now. I know that you are a good person, Reo, so please... act like one."

Reo heaved a heavy sigh and ruffled his hair with his hand in irritation. He had forgotten how to play the good guy, and it was driving him mad that Sakura even saw through his hardened shell. Still, it wasn't very hard not to. Relatively speaking he was probably the most innocent of the Yakuza members considering his politeness and even temper.

"Alright..." said Reo softly. "But not even I know that much. Like you said, I'm not much of a threat so I'm not really that important to be told anything. Just a foot soldier, you know... Well, all I can tell you is that this morning I woke up to find that the boss had been killed. Everyone was just kind of standing around and staring at eachother because we just didn't know what was going to happen to us. Eventually Shin came in though and said that there was a new Yakuza boss. He advised that he was the new number one man and that we should pledge our loyalty to this new boss..."

"Who was it?" asked Sakura.

"I don't know... Nobody does, really. He just said the name was 'Kin'. But, even though I am just a kohai to the higher ranks, even I know that no one in their right mind would pick someone as stupid as Shin to be the right-hand man. I mean, the guy's a fucking idiot if you ask me..."

"Well, we did have a feeling that it was Shin's father who may have been pulling the strings, but that still doesn't explain why any shinobi would put a politician in charge... Rogue shinobi tend to hate any and all forms of authority..."

"Shin's father?"

"Yeah... Tanaka Shinji."

"You're kidding, right?"

"No... You mean you guys didn't know?"

A thoughtful look crossed Reo's face.

"What is it?" asked Sakura.

"Well," said Reo. "I didn't even know he was from our village... That explains a lot though. Shin always did act like a fucking spoiled little rich kid... But I wonder how he became a shinobi if he was from Sake?"

"Shinobi? We were told that Shin was sent away from the village at an early age for schooling before he decided to run away, only to return to the village when he was flat broke. Since his father had then become a politician it was decided that Shin should stay as far away as possible. Taking a job with Kabuki however seemed like a pretty terrible way to stay inconspicuous though..."

"Shin didn't just take up with our group..."

"Huh?"

"He came with Goro."

"What!"

"Yeah... He came in with Goro. In fact, the day that Goro came to Kabuki was the same day that he had arrived in the village. I was the one in charge of getting them drinks so I remember... Come to think of it, we were their first stop as they still had their traveling bags."

"What the hell is going on here?" asked Naruto. "How did Shin become shinobi?"

"Why, is it hard?"

Sakura and Naruto gave a look of "you have no idea" to Reo.

"Well," said Sakura. "It's not like you can just join a clan... Typically you're born into one."

"So then how did Shin get in? He's really dumb. I don't think anyone let alone shinobi would let him join their group..."

"Do you think his dad is one?" asked Naruto.

Sakura furrowed her brow in thought. "I think we'd better report to Kakashi..."

"Huh? What about me?" asked Reo.

"Just sit tight and we'll have this over in no time," reassured Naruto. "Just don't get in my way..."

"Why?"

"Because I'm the next Hokage... You don't wanna mess with me."

The day was coming to an end as Sakura and Naruto walked down the street towards the setting sun. As Reo stood in the middle of the street watching their iconic silhouettes fade into the distance, he only had one thing to say.

"What the fuck is a Hokage?"


	11. Chapter 11

After recounting the information to Kakashi and the rest of the team, the only step that seemed to be next was to visit Tanaka Shinji's home themselves. This whole time they had avoided going there as undoubtedly there would be shinobi in the vicinity. However, as the team surrounded the home on the posh side of town, it became more and more evident that there was nothing out of the ordinary inside.

Sakura peeked over the back wall and found the garden bustling with activity. The servants were sweeping the deck surrounding the house and airing out the bedsheets. One man in tattered clothing rolled up his pants and began wading into the pond to clear out the leaves that had fallen in. Three other gardeners squatted nearby cleaning their tools as they had finished clipping the bushes that dotted the yard. Sakura quietly leapt over the wall and secured her position behind a bush. Looking over to the Eastern corner of the compound, she watched as Sai slipped in and landed without a sound. She smiled at the sight and marveled in the fact that he never seemed to make any rustling noises, even when they weren't on a mission.

_As expected of an ANBU... _she thought.

Naruto dropped down behind her and moved towards the opposite corner as Sai. When they saw Kakashi come around the house from the front and enter a side shouji door, they signaled to Sasuke waiting hidden in the trees as his team below him surrounded the house just in case. Nodding, he in turn signaled them to let them know they were in. Nobody was sure as to what they were going to find but as Sakura waited patiently in position, she began to notice something strange.

Sakura looked over at Sai who was now sniffing the leaves of his bush. She watched him pluck a leaf off and delicately touch its edges. A confused look crossed his face and he then crouched all the way down to the ground and began smelling the grass. He rustled its tips with his fingers before looking over to Sakura in alarm.

_Nani?_ she mouthed at him.

Sai made his way over to her and put his mouth to her ear.

"The grass and bushes were cut yesterday..." he whispered.

Sakura looked at him in confusion before realizing that indeed the yard was vacant of the smell of freshly-cut grass. Looking up at Sasuke she signaled that it was a trap when Kakashi suddenly came bursting out of the back door and skid to a halt.

"It's a trap!" he yelled.

It was too late. By the time that they had figured it out they were already surrounded. The gardeners, the man in the pond, even the women airing out the laundry suddenly brandished weapons that were sharpened to the highest degree. What was worse was that there were shinobi lying hidden in the pond.

Kakashi bounded towards his team as shuriken came flying at him from every direction. As he came to a halt, the back shouji doors opened and a woman in an expensive kimono stepped out with shinobi and Shin.

"Well, well, well..." she said. "It seems the Konoha shinobi have figured it out."

Kakashi traced the woman's features with his eyes. Something about her was strangely familiar.

"I know you..." said Kakashi. "I've seen you before..."

"You should know me, Kakashi... I fought against you in the shinobi war."

Kakashi gasped as he then realized. Though the creases of her face were more pronounced and her hair was turning gray, there was no disputing that this was the very same shinobi that he had once fought so many years ago.

"Kin..." he whispered. "So you're the one."

"Why don't you tell your underlings to come out of the bushes so that I may greet them properly."

Out from behind the bushes stepped Naruto, Sai and Sakura. Spreading out on Kakashi's flanks, they began to size up their competition immediately.

"So... I see the girl escaped. Not one of yours, eh Kakashi?"

"Of course. How else would she have beaten your kohai so easily... I thought you were dead."

"I was... for a time... Taking orders and fighting in a stupid war just doesn't suit an entrepreneur like me. I ended up implanting myself here in the village in the end."

As the conversation went on Sakura felt lustful eyes upon her and immediately looked up at Shin. It sickened her to see the familiar slight grin on his face again, and she relished in the thought of actually getting the chance to beat it off his face permanently. However, when her eyes passed from Shin back to Kin, she realized something more.

"Oh my god..." said Sakura. "You're Shin's mother..."

Everyone went silent as Kakashi, Naruto and Sai made the same connection. The fact that Shin was born in Sake but had somehow become shinobi now made sense. He was trained from birth. Being that Kin was now the wife of Tanaka Shinji, she had both the crime and political realms covered.

Kakashi looked back at Sakura and nodded for her to proceed.

"Tanaka-san..." said Sakura. "Just so you know, I am going to kill your son."

The sudden harsh remark made everyone flinch. It was now evident that Sakura had claimed Shin as her own, making it so that no one else could touch him.

"He trained well," smiled Kin.

"I trained better..."

Sakura punched the ground and made the earth split with a thunderous sound. The crack that it created swallowed the pond and drove right up under the house. The lack of support made the floor collapse with everyone on it and the shinobi had no choice but to jump out towards Kakashi and his team.

An array of shuriken were shot from Kakashi's side as their enemies tried to escape the collapsing house. A few of the targets were hit but a few had escaped serious injury. Kin immediately shot at Kakashi as she knew she was the only one skillful enough to take him on, but the others were quickly surprised to find that Sasuke and his team were waiting for them as soon as they had tried to leave the compound.

"Don't let a single one escape!" yelled Kakashi as he locked kunai with Kin. "They'll alert the others!"

Sakura dodged a shinobi and threw him into the wall with incredible force. Turning around to look for Shin, she saw him wince at the sight of her strength and he looked as if he was going to run.

_Fucking woose! _she thought.

Seeing the deadlocked glare of Sakura's eyes made Shin freeze for a second before he collected himself. He knew he couldn't get close to her so he made hand signs that summoned two water dragons that shot at Sakura in a winding fashion. Bounding back towards the West end she concentrated her chakura so that her feet stuck against the wall. As soon as she saw her opening she shot forward through a space between the dragons just as they crashed in full force against the wall now behind her. Sakura rolled on the ground once before dashing straight at Shin with a blow to his face. The impact immediately made her stomach leap with joy as a few of Shin's teeth were now seen flying through the air.

"Nice one, Sakura-chan!" yelled Naruto.

Though Naruto hadn't seen what it was that Shin had done to her, he knew very well that look on her face. Sakura only produced that deathly look and made such a deathly threat whenever he himself had tried to come on to her. The fact that Sakura was out for the kill meant that the offense must have been extremely serious.

Sakura looked around for her next target and saw that everyone was quite busy with the battle. However, just when she thought Shin was down for the count she saw him pick himself up and climb over the wall.

"Shit! He's going to get help!" Sakura yelled as she raced after him.

Kakashi looked towards Sakura for a split second, just in time to see her hopping over the wall. Though he trusted her with every fiber of his being, he could not help but look. Suddenly a kunai came back at Kakashi and he found himself once again locked with Kin.

"What are you looking at Kakashi? Afraid that's the last you'll see of your student?" she said.

"Actually, I wanted to get one last look at your son before his face is deformed permanently."

Kakashi kicked back Kin so hard that it sent her flying backwards. By a bit of luck, she ended up tripping on the uneven ground that Sakura had made. Taking advantage of the moment he immediately moved to finish her off.

"Katon! Goukakyuu no jutsu!" he yelled.

A giant stream of fire burst forth from Kakashi's mouth and blasted Kin. Though she had begun to move away, her expensive kimono caught fire and she was unable to unravel it. Putting hand signals together she made an effort to bring water from the pond to her but in turn found it to be her enemy. The moment that the water splashed on Kin, Kakashi was waiting.

"Chidori!"

A shock of electricity shot up the jet-stream killing Kin within a matter of seconds. Though Kakashi knew that fire was something much easier to deter, moisture wasn't as easy to escape from if you were drenched in it. He also couldn't perform both elemental juitsu back to back fast enough for someone like Kin, so he waited for the perfect moment when she would aid in his attack. When her felt her body go limp from the attack he released his juitsu and let her dead body fall to the ground in front of the others.

One look at Kin's body could only mean that the battle had been completely lost. Without her help in controlling the political world, the entire plan had gone up in flames. Every shinobi that was left was now trying to escape but it was no use. Just as they were about to reach the walls of the compound they found themselves pulled back the moment they took their eyes away from the target. An Uchiha and Hatake were considered overkill now that Kin was out of the way, but as soon as the last shinobi was taken care of, Kakashi ran towards the Eastern wall and hopped onto it to scan the street just outside it.

Kakashi found a trail of blood leading down the road followed by what could only have been Sakura's tiny footprints. He was right about to jump down to chase after her but spotted her pink hair coming around the corner. In a split second his heart relaxed to find her unharmed. Though his face and posture didn't show it, his stomach had been turning in anxiousness ever since she had scaled the wall.

"Everything ok?" he yelled towards her.

Sakura gave a smile and threw two thumbs up. She waited until she had just reached him before putting her hands on her knees and catching her breath.

"He collapsed a block away. I checked him, and he died of a severe concussion that took a little while to kick in... How's everything here?" she asked.

"Ok... Just a bit of a mess. Good job. Let's start the clean up," said Kakashi right before he jumped back into the compound.

"UGH... I hate clean-ups."

* * *

The rest of the team's time spent in the village of Sake was short. After saying their goodbyes to Jotaro and the rest of his family, it was unfortunate that they could not stay to attend the funeral. They had simply spent too much time in Sake and it was time for them to get back to Konoha.

"Ugh..." said Naruto as they marched the dirt road. "Why do I have to carry Tsunade-baachan's sake bottles?"

"Well... maybe if you didn't call her 'baachan' all the time, she wouldn't have ordered it to be so," said Sakura. "Besides, you're special."

Everyone giggled at Sakura's remark. Even Karin couldn't help but give out a tiny chuckle as she watched Naruto shrug his pack. It had been a long mission of constant vigilance, and though one might not think it exhausting, keeping attention to detail can often wrack your brain if you do it long enough.

The weather was cooler that day and the sky was full of soft cottony clouds that made them want to lie in the grass. They couldn't have asked for better timing as they didn't feel like hurrying back for another mission assignment. Listening to the leaves brush against the branches were like a soft humming of a mother's voice to her child as they breathed in the crisp forest air. It simply was a beautiful day to be alive, but even with the beautiful surroundings before her, Sakura could not help but wonder as to what was going to happen with her and Kakashi.

Sakura snuck a look at the back of Kakashi's neck and her heart leaped. Her hands were remembering the feel of it as she brushed her fingers through his hair. His shoulders were tough and well defined with muscle that even though he wore a vest, she could still make the shape of them out with her eyes. She knew the exact width and every curve of his back muscles. In truth, it was throwing her into a heat and distracting her thoughts entirely.

Up front Kakashi was feeling on edge. He really didn't know what it was that he had done. He was nervous of what Sakura was expecting from him and in truth, he really couldn't make any kind of commitment. What was worse was that for a man who was so comfortable on missions, he suddenly found himself with a weakness.

Kakashi's mind had been slowly wrapping itself around the fact that seeing Sakura in a fight was now making him nervous. In his heart he knew that he could have taken out Kin much quicker if he hadn't been so distracted by Sakura's fight. Though he was always looking out for her, somehow he found himself worrying for her safety more so than ever before. Typically he'd just finish up his fight before checking to see if she needed help, but now he was surveying her from the very start.

"Sakura, are you okay? You look flushed," said Naruto suddenly.

Sakura shook her head and caught herself. Looking around, she found everyone except for Kakashi looking back at her.

"Oh! I'm fine. Just tired, that's all..."

Karin gave her a raised eyebrow with a look of doubt on her face. She knew that look very well because she had it very often.

_She's blushing over Sasuke..._ thought Karin. _Hmph... Don't even think about it. _


	12. Chapter 12

The tall wooden gates of Konoha were a sight for sore eyes as twilight stuck the party. Sakura longed for her own bed and a nice warm meal that didn't come from a bar or restaurant. The familiar smell of the village seemed to welcome her with joy with its bustling marketplace and spurts of shinobi children. Every now and again a familiar face would cross their paths to greet them as they passed, and with each of those faces came a breath of relaxation.

"Aaaaw man, I can't wait for an Ichiraku special!" beamed Naruto when they passed the ramen stand. "I saved as much as I could from our mission to buy two bowls!"

"What the hell is an Ichiraku special?" asked Suigetsu.

"NANI! It is only Konoha's most special of special ramen! Complete with crab, Char Siu and Anee-san's special shoyu-boiled eggs! I have to correct this offense! You are coming with me!"

Naruto grabbed Suigetsu's hand and led him back towards the stand. Being pulled so quickly he instinctively latched onto Karin as well.

"Hey!" she yelled as she was pulled so suddenly. "You idiots! We have to report to the Hokage!"

Naruto stopped and looked back to give Sakura the best puppy face he could muster. It was obvious that she was the one to have the last say as she would be the one pummeling him if he didn't listen.

"Go ahead..." she muttered. "We can give the report by ourselves..."

"HAH! Arigatou, Sakura-chan!" yelled Naruto as he yanked the train away.

Sasuke watched as Karin protested but did not give any orders for them to stop. Since Juugo was the one he needed to look after, he didn't see why he should keep the other two. So, being that he was glad for some peace, he turned and headed straight for the Hokage's office with the rest.

* * *

"So... All that happened in a matter of weeks, huh?" said Tsunade as she peeked over a stack of papers.

Sakura looked embarrassed as undoubtedly this was a back-up of papers that Tsunade had neglected. Turning to Shizune, the look she received said the exact same thing that she was thinking.

"Well I guess you saved me a whole lot more grief by not waiting for orders," said Tsunade. "... And I'm glad that you acted when you did. It would have been a hell of a lot harder to dig out the truth if you hadn't. Anything else?..."

The silence from the rest of Kakashi's team let her know that nothing else was worth reporting.

"Very well then, you're dismissed."

Sakura trudged down the steps ahead of everyone else in a tired fashion. Once she reached the bottom she stretched and yawned from such an exhaustive journey.

"Want to eat?" asked Kakashi.

The suggestion surprised Sasuke as it was unlike Kakashi, but being that they were undoubtedly being surveyed as part of Tsunade's orders it really wasn't. The opportunity would give Sasuke the chance to win over their trust, but on the other hand he also wanted to spend more time with Sakura. He had longed to have a real conversation with her ever since his return to the village. What kind of person she had become was a mystery that he wanted to solve.

"Sure," said Sakura.

"Alright," said Sasuke immediately after her.

Kakashi and Sakura were taken aback. They didn't think that Sasuke would agree to staying with them much longer, and though both of them didn't expect it, they were hoping to be alone together.

"Okay... Then how's about some shabu-shabu?" asked Kakashi.

"Ooooh... That's sounds perfect! I don't want anymore fried food for a MONTH!" declared Sakura.

Kakashi smiled as this was what he loved best about Sakura. Somehow her joy always seemed to affect the very air around her, and he could feel the energy off of Sasuke changing into a happy one. Even Juugo seemed to relax in her presence.

As they all waltzed over to what they knew was the best shabu-shabu place in town, their mouths began to water as they saw that their arrival was perfect when they didn't have to wait in line. Scooting over to the back of the booth, Sakura couldn't help but give a squeak as she blushed at the prospect of eating good beef and a heap of vegetables. The sight of her doing so caught the attention of the other men in her party, and they couldn't help but think that she was cute.

Sasuke was about to take the seat next to Sakura as Juugo made his way to slide into the booth across from her, but found himself suddenly beat to the seat by Kakashi. The sudden move by Kakashi seemed a little bit fast, but not fast enough for Sasuke to think anything of it. Afterall, Kakashi only seemed to move quick when it came to girls and food. Little did he know that it was the first and not the latter of the two.

As Kakashi slipped in he let his leg bump Sakura. The sudden warmth beside her made her heart jump with glee. She wanted to hug Kakashi up from the front and feel his shoulder blades so badly that she was worried she might actually do it right then and there. A sudden flush of heat flooded between her legs as she yearned to have them wrapped around him. Distracted by what was happening, she seemed to look almost feverish as she blushed uncontrollably.

"Sakura... Are you okay?" asked Juugo.

Once again everyone's attention was on her at the worst possible moment.

"Yes! I'm fine..." she replied.

"Are you sure? You were like this earlier... Are you sick?"

"No, no, no! Really... I'm okay..."

"Hmmm..." said Kakashi as he put a hand to her forehead and squinted his eyes in observation. "You do feel a bit warm."

Sasuke's eye twitched as he didn't like seeing Kakashi touch Sakura. What made it worse was that she seemed to blush even harder when he did it.

"I'm fine! Really, sensei!" she pleaded. "I'm just tired and more importantly, hungry!"

Sakura was nervous and anxious all the way until the food arrived. Apparently the sudden attention caused everyone to periodically observe her "condition" from across the table whenever they deemed it necessary. Even Sasuke was peeking over, and it disturbed her the worst as undoubtedly his Sharingan ability made him that much more susceptible to body language.

Relief finally came once the first plate of vegetables arrived. Almost instinctively the dish of water with a netted spoon to catch the foam was passed over to Sakura, and she gave this look that said "typical men" as she accepted it. She noted how they all didn't even look at her as it was given, and for a brief second she wanted to whack them all over the heads with the spoon. Brushing it to the side she quickly helped to toss in the carrots and watercress first as it took the longest to cook, and before they knew it the pot was full and emanating a most delicious smell.

"Ah! Kakashi!" came a man's voice from across the restaurant. "I was hoping you'd get back soon!"

"Ah? Konichi-wa, Gai..." said Kakashi.

"Heeheehee... Hello everyone!" said Gai as he came up to their table. "So, Kakashi... You thought you'd get away with it again, huh?"

"Whatever do you mean?"

"You know EXACTLY what I mean! That's okay though, I've already made the preparations with Iruka, Genma and Anko."

Kakashi put down his chopsticks and gave a horrible look of irritation.

"You didn't..."

"Heehee! Oh yes, I did! By the way, you are all invited! It will be Kakashi's thirty-fifth birthday!" Gai beamed.

Kakashi sunk his head at the sound of the number.

"Did you have to say _that_?" he asked.

"Come, come now, Kakashi. You mustn't be ashamed of your age for someone who looks twenty-eight! Anyway, it's at the Ayame, so be prepared to drink and dance!"

Kakashi sunk back into his seat and stared after Gai in hate. He couldn't believe that his age had been outed to his students, let alone Sakura.

"Thirty-five, huh?" Sakura giggled. "That makes you fourteen years our senior..."

Kakashi looked over to Sakura smiling in evilness and laughing away. Before she knew it, she was squished against the wall of the booth as Kakashi pushed his back against in irritation. The harder he pushed, the more she squealed and giggled as her tease had been effective.

"Urusai..." said Sasuke as he picked up a thin slice of beef with his chopsticks.

"So are you going?" Sakura asked Sasuke. "Come on, we have to be there to clap for this ojiisan sitting next to me!"

A burst of giggles flooded the air as Kakashi once again squished Sakura against the wall. Seeing that it wasn't going to end unless he answered, Sasuke spoke.

"I'll be there..." he said as he frowned upon their disturbing display.

"Great!" Sakura muffled. "We look forward to the honor, Kakashi-jiji!... Aaaaaah!"

* * *

Sakura's mother stood quietly washing dishes in the kitchen sink. The chore seemed to bore her as she circled the rim of a bowl with her sponge, scraping at the rice leftover from her evening meal. She paused for a moment to rub her forehead against her sleeve and irritatingly worked to make an itch go away. Just as it seemed that the suds from the soap were about to reach her clothing, she put down her arm to begin washing again. Everything seemed pretty normal in the Haruno household that day, but as she rounded to a large green bowl at the bottom of the basin, a sad looked crossed her face and she turned to look at a framed photo nearby.

The handsome image of a tough looking man peered back at her with eyes of green. The lines of his face spoke of age and experience, and his strong forearms reminded her of his embrace. Sakura's mother stopped breathing as she remembered how those arms protected her and reassured her in times of war, and how they seemed to lift anything around it so effortlessly. The sudden memory of him carrying Sakura when she was born hit her in a wave of emotion, and slowly but surely hot tears streamed down her face like a gentle tide.

It had been ten years since Sakura's father had died in battle, and it still felt like a fresh wound to the heart. Even after all of those years, Sakura's mother still felt as if she was the bird that you see on the side of the road, lamenting its mate who had been struck down by fate. The only thing that had kept her going all of those years was the sheer fact that she had to stay with Sakura. However, as the days passed and Sakura grew older and more capable, she could not help but feel as if she herself was letting go.

A sudden click of the front doorknob shook Sakura's mother out of her trance.

"Okaasan! Tadaima!" came Sakura's voice from the living room. "Are you home?"

Sakura's mother cleared her voice before she spoke.

"I'm in here!" she called back. "Did you eat?"

"Hai! I need your help though!"

"Oh?"

* * *

Sakura's mother giggled as she watched her daughter rile through her closet like a storm.

"I have absolutely nothing to wear!" Sakura cried and threw her hands up. "I can't believe this!"

"So..." said her mother. "After all of these years, Kakashi finally gave in, did he?"

"I guess... I never really saw it there before, but I guess so..."

"Sounds like your father..."

"Hmm?"

"Well, I had no clue that he liked me either. He was such a strong and silent type of man that no one really knew what he was thinking. All the girls were after him though..."

"They were?"

"Yupp."

"So what about you then?"

"Well, I wasn't. Once I saw all these girls crazy for him it just kind of turned me off. I didn't want to bother as I had war on my mind. But... I guess that's what made me the one. I wasn't chasing after him and it intrigued him to no end. He began popping up at my usual spots when he never inhabited those places before. It was like he was strategically working his way into my line of vision until I could see nothing else and was forced to look at him."

Sakura laughed. "So, how did he finally approach you?"

"Well... He came after me one day. I was on the other side of the field when he had heard that my squad was in serious trouble. He broke his ranks to come and get me. I don't really remember much, but it just kind of fell into place after that."

"Wow... So I guess he really liked you, huh?"

"I had no clue! BUT... I should have known."

"Hmm?"

"Well, how can you resist these slender legs and beautifully large forehead?"

Sakura giggled at the fact that it was her mother that she had indeed inherited her forehead from.

"Either way..." said her mother standing up and walking over to the closet. "I think you should wear this one."

"That one? But don't you think it's a little skimpy?"

"It's just right for the occasion. Besides, it is his birthday, right?"

"Okaasan!"

"Hahaha... Look, all I can say is to look your best. Put on some make-up and do your hair so that you don't look like how you normally do. But... just be mindful that he won't be able to do anything with you while you're in front of everyone else. Afterall, he is your sensei. Just dangle the meat in front of the dog for a bit and let him marvel at you in secret."

"Hai... Arigatou, Okaasan. I'll make sure he wants that meat! Hahahaha..."


	13. Chapter 13

The sun had set behind the mountains near Konoha as a chill overtook the last patches of light dotting the streets. The air was beginning to buzz with excitement as the weekend had finally taken shape, and most shinobi were either out on dates or heading to bars where they could find one. The choice spot seemed to be the yakitori restaurants where food and drink were readily available. Passing this commotion in a very shy and meek disposition was Sakura.

Sakura looked slightly tense in the shoulders as she wove between the crowds of men who stopped to stare at her. She wasn't used to being in a dress, let alone make-up, but anyone who looked upon her would undoubtedly think that she was nothing less than beautiful. Though she tried not to let her face show it, she was absolutely nervous about going to the party in this fashion. Afterall, she hadn't seen Kakashi since two days ago when she was sitting with a shabu-shabu pot in front of her. She didn't know what things would be like between them and how he would act towards her, but she was confident that her dressed up look would surely entice his eyes and melt his heart. She just had to believe.

Sakura stopped and pulled to the side of the road once the Ayame bar came into sight. She had just seen Naruto go in through the front door, but she was too far away to run and catch up to him in heels so that they could enter at the same time. Biting her lip, she uneasily fidgeted on the side of the road.

_Come on Ino... Hurry up! _she thought.

A minute or two had passed and Sakura looked uneasily up and down the road for Ino's arrival. It took a while, but eventually she spotted Ino's long flowing blonde hair coming around the corner. Heaving a sigh of relief Sakura waved her down as quietly as she could.

"Hi! Hi!" said Ino as she pulled up. "You look so sexy!"

Sakura blushed. "That wasn't what I was going for..."

"Well, I guess when you are sexy like us, you just can't hide it... Oh well! Come on let's go!"

The buzz from within the bar was thrilling as Sakura walked in with Ino. They walked towards the familiar voices coming from the back and ignored the looks that other male shinobi were giving to the two most single-looking girls in the room. Sakura and Ino were most certainly ripe in their age and obviously dressed to impress. Every curve of their body and wave of their hair was analyzed to its finest detail by the time the two of them had reached their party.

Sakura's eyes locked onto Kakashi's silver hair as she and Ino approached him, and the moment he looked up she held her breath as he did the same. The light in his eyes told Sakura that he was excited to see her, and she could tell that he was doing his best not to let it show.

"Thanks for coming," he said with a smile and a tiny wave. "I'm not really much for parties, but I guess I had no choice..."

"Like hell you didn't," said Anko as she came up behind Ino and Sakura. "We finally pinned you down, eh Kakashi?"

The familiar grin that Anko always wore was now gracing everyone's presence with a lively spirit. Lunging forward she landed a birthday punch on his arm.

"Ow!" he yelled as he rubbed his arm. "Was that necessary?"

"Of course it was!" grinned Anko. "By the way, I brought a few of my girlfriends as you have been single for way too long, birthday boy..."

Sakura's heart dropped as three women she didn't know stepped forward to give Kakashi their well wishes. One of these women in particular, Akemi, was quite pretty from where she stood. Sakura reminded herself that she and Kakashi were not an item, and therefore he had every right to be showered with womanly affections on his birthday. Still, she couldn't help but worry once the sake had begun to pour.

Kakashi gave a warm smile but nothing more to Anko's friends. He then walked away nonchalantly and began speaking with his male counterparts in the room.

"Eeew..." said Ino. "Look who just walked in..."

Sakura turned around to see that Sasuke had arrived. Every single girl in the bar immediately blushed when he walked past them, but he was his usual self and ignored all of the admiration with a blank look.

"Happy birthday, Kakashi," said Sasuke.

"Oh? Sasuke? Where's the rest of your team?" asked Kakashi.

"At home... I needed a break from their bickering."

"Hehe... I completely understand. Let's get you a drink!"

The moment that Kakashi turned around Sasuke's eyes darted over to Sakura standing near the bar with Ino. Looking back at Kakashi who was busy getting his drink, Sasuke took the opportunity to walk very calmly over to the girls.

"Konichi wa..." said Sasuke, much to Sakura and Ino's surprise.

"H-Hi..." stammered Sakura.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Hmm?... Oh yeah! I am... Thanks for asking..."

Ino and Sakura looked absolutely dumbfounded that Sasuke was speaking to them, let alone approached them.

"Here you go, Sasuke-kun..." smiled Kakashi as he suddenly came out of nowhere to interrupt. "I hope you like this kind of sake..."

Sakura thought she caught a tiny hint of sarcasm in Kakashi's voice but his face didn't show any signs of it at all. Sasuke didn't seem to notice it as well, so she took it as her imagination and brushed it off.

It seemed that everyone was having a really good time once an hour of drinking had passed, and soon Ino and Sakura found themselves quite tipsy. The sake seemed to be pouring out of nowhere as Kakashi's longtime friends kept buying the rounds of drinks for all the guests, and the chatter seemed to mix into the music that was now playing throughout the establishment.

"Hey, let's dance!" squealed Ino in excitement. "When do we ever get the chance!"

In truth, Ino loved to dance more than anything else in the world. Her heart was pounding as she dragged Sakura over to the dance floor and began initiating her movements. Her flow and ease were evident to everyone watching and it just made them want to dance too. Slowly the other groups of women watching joined in, and with all of the sake that was affecting their senses, it seemed that any male fears of embarrassment were hurled out the window once Ino enticed Chouji into the mix.

Though he wasn't much for knowing how to charm women, Chouji sure did know how to have a good time, and as he reluctantly followed Ino over to Sakura he soon found himself the object of envy as he now had two of the most beautiful girls in the bar dancing with him. Any of the male shinobi standing by now felt welcomed by their female comrades, and they began to gently rush the dance floor in excitement causing it to flood with more happy spirits.

Before Sakura knew it the sake had seriously kicked in. Looking over to Kakashi in want, she saw that he wasn't looking but rather trying to be a good host by speaking with everyone. It was then that she remembered her mother's warning that Kakashi was not going to be able to show her affection, so she should just be something pretty for him to look at and desire. Seeing that there were so many other pretty women around, Sakura decided to break out her knives and show Kakashi that she was the best one of them.

Sakura loved dancing just as much as Ino did, if not more. Deciding that it was her best asset she happily joined Ino with flourished movements and big smiles all around. She simply looked so good that it eventually attracted attention and Sakura soon found herself surrounded by Naruto and Kiba.

Looking at Sakura and Ino was like looking at fox demons. They entranced anyone who looked upon them and drew them into their grasp. They soon had the attention of every male in the room and Sakura felt that Kakashi's attention had been caught by her too. With the music playing loudly and the sake getting everyone more and more drunk, Sakura felt confident that her primary objective had been accomplished as Kakashi was undoubtedly drunk and swaying.

Sakura peeled off the dance floor and passed Sasuke along the way. He watched as she ignored him and swerved towards the rest of the party standing nearby. Realizing that this was not going to get any better, Sasuke decided to leave for home before anyone pulled him onto the dance floor as well.

"Hey Kakashi!" he heard her say as he left out the front.

Kakashi looked down at Sakura smiling up to him and with his cup in his hand, pointed at her.

"You're an asshole..." he said.

"What?"

"You're an asshole," he repeated.

"Why would you say that?"

Kakashi took a swig from his cup of sake as Sakura stared at him in hurt and utter bewilderment. Realizing that she wasn't going to get an answer Sakura walked away just as the blood drained from her face. Once she had gotten five feet away however, she turned back around to speak to him when suddenly Akemi came flying out of nowhere.

Sakura watched in horror as Akemi threw herself on Kakashi and kissed him on the lips. Stunned, Kakashi looked drunkenly down at Akemi who lunged forward again for a second kiss. This time however, he turned slightly so that he could look maliciously at Sakura whose face had gone white.

"Oh my God... Akemi!" Anko scolded as she tried to peel her off of Kakashi.

Sakura would not stay any further and immediately turned to walk out the front door. She looked towards Ino who was still dancing away with Chouji. Having at least enough sense in her she quietly asked Shikamaru to let Ino know that she had left because she wasn't feeling well.

"Will you be okay?" he asked.

"I'll be fine... I'll see you guys later."

Sakura disappeared quickly into the crowd and eventually pushed her way out of the bar. The chilly night air hit her flushing face in a clash of hot and cold. Once she was in the street she turned left to head home but found her way blocked by Sasuke who was standing just ahead. He looked up the moment that she had whipped around in the other direction and watched her as she took off to take the long way home. Knowing full well that it was, he decided to follow her.

Sakura could feel Sasuke calmly tailing her from far away as she kept her eyes low to the ground. She waited until she hit a dark patch on the street to pick up her pace so that he couldn't notice and gained some distance from him. When the time was right, she turned a corner before disappearing in a shinobi fashion.

Turning the corner Sasuke stopped in his tracks when he found that Sakura had successfully evaded him. He didn't know if she knew that he was following her, but chasing after her would most certainly cause her to notice. So, he decided to leave her be instead.

* * *

Midnight had struck over Konoha's darkened corners as the sounds of nightlife slowly disappeared. The street in front of Sakura's home was dark and quiet by the time she had reached her front door. In all the years that she had lived there she had never appreciated the fact that her doorstep was just out of the street lamp's reach. Right now however, she couldn't be any more thankful as all she wanted was nothing more than to not be seen. Grasping the doorknob, she quietly gave it a turn and stepped in for relief from prying eyes.

The lights in the house were all off except for a tiny glow emanating from the bathroom. Sakura knew that her mother had left the nightlight on for her return, so she carefully made her way over to turn it off and go upstairs. Her eyes stared at her mother's door just in case she had woken up. She didn't feel like explaining what had happened just yet, so she really couldn't breathe until she had finally shut the door to her room behind her.

Once Sakura was in the clear she turned around and put her back against the door. She then slid down to the floor with a thump and looked straight across the room. Hot tears began to stream down her face in an uncontrollable flood as she had been holding them back ever since she had left the bar. The sudden release of tears was like the breaking of a dam, and all of her emotions that she had done her best to keep hidden now came pouring out like an open wound. Slowly she began to gasp for air as her silent tears turned to sobs, and she felt as if the crack in her heart had finally split straight down the center in a blistering heat.

Images of Kakashi's cruel look were burned into her mind like a brand. She kept seeing his narrowed eyes of spite and furrowed brow of hate. He hadn't even looked at Akemi. He only looked at her. His vengeful stare was like an arrow to Sakura's heart, and she just felt completely shot down in one moment.

Sakura couldn't help but conjure up all of the happy memories of the last few days. She had felt so happy in the bliss of being with someone like Kakashi, but now she understood just how much of a human being he really was. In essence, he was just like everyone else. What broke Sakura's heart the most however, was just the fact that someone she had regarded so highly as a skilled shinobi had now been reduced to a mere mortal in her eyes. She just couldn't possibly look up to him anymore, and it shattered her to think that she could no longer think of him as a sensei. In an instant, Kakashi had become so normal in her eyes.

A couple of minutes had passed as Sakura remained slumped with her back against the door. When the sobbing and gasping had died down and she had finally found herself able to move again, she got up from where she was and went over to her dresser. Pulling out a tank top and some loose shorts she then went into the bathroom to take a shower. Though she had just been crying her eyes out she somehow felt like she couldn't as the water washed away the sweat from earlier that evening. It had seemed that she was all cried out and had become nothing less than jaded.

The soft comfort of Sakura's blanket welcomed her with loving arms as she slipped into bed. It had never before felt so reassuring and protecting to her as she pulled it around her tired shoulders. The pillow felt like a mother's nourishing embrace as it caught Sakura's head like a cloud, and gently her eyes began to shut to the harsh reality around her. Tucking her legs in she tried to hide from the world as it seemed to suffocate the very air around her, and as her mind drifted into a much needed sleep, the last image she saw was that of Kakashi's malicious face. Everything from that point on was going to change.


	14. Chapter 14

All of Konoha was covered in a golden sheen as the first rays of the sun stretched high into the sky above. The early morning dew still gave a shuddering chill as it quietly stuck to the tiny reeds of grass in the village fields, and a stillness passed through the dirt roads that wound around Sakura's home. Only the sound of footsteps of early morning joggers and a few chirping birds drifted in and out of the quiet, their tiny voices affording a soft symphony to any awakened ears. It was a peaceful morning for anyone looking for it, and though the events of the previous night were stressful, nobody could tell as the sun began to warm Konoha's darkened corners.

A bit of light peeked through Sakura's curtains as her chest rose and fell in slumber. Her body was limp from the mental exhaustion of the night before and though unconscious, her features still showed remnants of the grief. Sakura's arms and legs stuck out like a starfish from beneath her fluffy comforter and her hair was strewn across her face in a messy furl. Her breathing was a murmur of soft snores as she took in the last moments of peace, and though she didn't know it, her heart clung to this as it didn't want to wake her poor mind to the pain.

Slowly the sound of ringing silence filtered into Sakura's consciousness as she eventually became aware of her sleeping limbs. The sheets and the pillows seemed to caress her perfectly in a way that could never be found prior to falling asleep. Keeping this position as long as she could, slowly she began to awaken to her surroundings.

Sakura gently peeked open her eyes to the ceiling above and took in the morning's stillness. For a brief moment she relished in the forgetfulness that came from the first minute of being awake but as it passed she began to realize that she was sad, and eventually she remembered why.

Pulling the blanket over her head Sakura shut her eyes. She wanted so badly for it all to have been a dream but alas, it was not. Kakashi seemed so alien to her now that she didn't know how she would ever face him again. As much as she wanted to be angry she really just couldn't find the strength as the grief outweighed everything else. Venturing to pull down the sheet to glimpse her desk clock, Sakura found that it was only seven o'clock. If only she could have slept ten more hours, or better yet, ten years.

Footsteps were heard outside her bedroom door as Sakura tried to hide from the world. Without much surprise, she heard her doorknob click as her mother was undoubtedly entering the room. Sakura shut her eyes again and tried to act asleep but knew that it was no use. Eventually she felt her mother sit on the side of her bed and begin to prod at her ribs.

"Sakura..." she heard her mother whisper. "You awake?"

Sakura knew very well that her mother didn't care if she was awake because the whisper included the prod. When no response was heard, Sakura's mother prodded a little bit harder.

"Nani?..." mumbled Sakura.

"Ah, you're awake!" teased her mother. "So... How did it go?"

A silence passed as Sakura could not find the strength to put together the words that would undoubtedly make her cry. So, she just laid there until her mother eventually began to pull the blanket down. A sudden clutch by Sakura's hands caused the blanket to jerk to a halt. Realizing that this was only going to get worse, Sakura began to recount the evening's events in a raspy voice.

Sakura's mother let go of the blanket and pulled back to sit quietly as she listened to her daughter retell the story between silent whimpers. Her heart ached as she knew too well the youthful feeling of being treated in such a manner. It was the second most painful feeling in this world next to the loss of a loved one, and she had always wished for Sakura to never have to go through it in love.

"I just don't know what happened..." said Sakura softly as she pulled down the comforter to reveal her puffy eyes.

Giving a look of remorse, Sakura's mother sighed before leaning forward to give her a big hug. As soon as she did so she felt Sakura burst even further into tears, and her heart broke.

"You know what," her mother began. "I bet you he was so jealous..."

"What?"

"Yupp... I bet you he was so jealous and that is why he did that. He probably couldn't stand seeing you dance with anyone else..."

"But how could I dance with him? He was so busy playing host and acting like there was nothing between us that there wasn't anything else I could do! I was just trying to be something pretty he could look at..."

"Well, maybe you did your job too well?"

Sakura thought about it for a second. It was true that maybe she "overdid" it. She was trying to seem like a vixen, and maybe she pushed it a bit too far? Maybe she danced a little too closely to the other guys?

"Still..." said Sakura. "I don't know how things could ever go back to being normal..."

"Well... Time will only tell," said her mother. "Just don't let it interfere with your missions. I don't want to get any calls from Tsunade-sama asking why you are not performing up to par... When is the next time you see him?"

"I don't know... I'm supposed to be sent out on another mission with the same teams, but I don't know when..."

At that point there was nothing else that Sakura could say, and her mother knew it. Eventually she would be forced to face Kakashi and so would begin the struggle to find a common ground again. It was never easy when you slept where you worked, but that was just a decision that she had made, albeit drunk. The honeymoon was nice while it lasted but now it was time to face the music and accept that there was no going back.

"I have faith in you..." Sakura's mother said as she kissed her daughter's forehead. "I always have."

* * *

Sakura walked through the streets with a blank look on her face. In short, she felt nothing less than bland. The busy sounds of the marketplace seemed to dull itself out as she turned the corner to head towards Ino's shop. They had planned the day before to go out for lunch with their friends but she really didn't want to go as she didn't feel like she could smile. There was nothing she wanted more in that moment than to just be alone. The reality of course was that if she turned down the lunch date then she'd be bombarded with questions as suspicions would arise since she had left the party early. There was no way she could not go.

The sight of Ino's shop ahead didn't seem to really strike Sakura as pleasant, nor was it disgusting either, but somehow it all just felt so bland. Of all the times that she had walked down that road she had felt either happy or angry about passing it. In the days when she hated Ino it was a source of grief, a stain that couldn't be removed. In most recent days however it had become a beacon of light whenever she was sorrowful and in need of solace.

"Yo!" Ino called when she came out of the shop and spotted Sakura's pink hair. "Let's go! I'm starving!"

Sakura stopped at the sudden call from Ino because it was like being woken up from a dream. When she realized that she was awake she put on a smile to recover herself and waved in response. It didn't seem that Ino had noticed as she took up a side by Sakura and immediately began blabbering the current gossip. She was never really one to notice much things so as the two girls turned the corner towards the row of restaurants, she had no inkling as to her friend's distress.

Sakura walked silently with her eyes slightly narrowed and her hands in her pocket, a habit that she would pick up whenever something was really troubling her. Her peripheral vision took note of Ino's flailing arms as she tried to be dramatic, and her heart yearned to speak the words that she needed to say. There was nothing that Sakura wanted more in that moment than to blurt out all of the events that she had kept so secret until that very moment. Telling her mother about what had happened between her and Kakashi just wasn't enough. Ino was her best friend. She was the one that knew Sakura's entire circle of friends and whom could see the whole world at the same level. If anyone could understand what she was going through, it was Ino, but in the end the secret was just much to forbidden to say.

"Are you listening?" Ino joked suddenly.

"Hmm? Of course!" replied Sakura. "I'm just tired, that's all."

"Ok, well, we're here, so spruce up for the boys at least."

Ino brushed back the tiny curtains that hung over the restaurant's front entrance just as Sakura did the same. For a moment they paused to see if they could find anyone there before them, but expecting that there wasn't they proceeded to get a table for five.

"Ugh, I hope they don't take too long," said Sakura. "I sure am starving..."

"Don't worry," said Ino. "Chouji is never late for a meal and he never lets anyone make him wait for one, either."

It was true what Ino had said as the meeting time was almost at hand when Chouji came in dragging Naruto and Shikamaru behind him.

"Perfect timing!" Ino smiled at Chouji.

"Of course!"

The moment the waitress had spotted Chouji's countenance she was already on the way to take their order.

"I'll take five orders of the Butterfish Teishoku, three of the Salmon Teishoku, an order of the Yakiniku special and four extra bowls of rice," said Chouji as soon as his butt hit the bench. "What do you guys want?"

Lucky for Sakura, everyone was already well acquainted with the restaurant's menu so it shaved an extra ten minutes off of their waiting time. She smiled as she handed the menu back to the waitress and eagerly began to anticipate the arrival of her dish. However, as she turned back to the rest of her friends it was then that she realized that waiting on the food was still going to be a trial in itself.

Sakura's heart began to sink as everyone began their recollections of the night before. They all joked about the dancing and flirty looks of the evening, and they reminisced in the pure freedom of being able to enjoy a night of drinking without worrying about having a mission the next day. Sakura smiled at the good parts but just as she knew, eventually it would make its way to the more hurtful part.

"My God! Did you see Kakashi-sensei?" said Ino. "I have NEVER seen him like that before! Even Iruka-sensei looked smashed from drinking too much..."

Sakura winced as the sound of Kakashi's name being uttered was like a mini-shuriken to the heart. The laughter that ensued only seemed to further deepen the wound as undoubtedly she knew what was coming next.

"Who was that girl Akemi?" Naruto asked. "I wish she had kissed me!"

Letting out a tiny laugh, Sakura tried her best to hide her discomfort. Everyone around her was laughing and she felt like crying. Looking around the table in hopeless vain, no one there knew that she had her heart broken last night. There was no one whom she could tell, and no one there who had a clue about anything that had happened between her and Kakashi. It was like she was forever bound to keep a secret that would flutter to the very edge of her lips but could go no further. In that moment, Sakura had never felt so alone.

"Hey... You alright?" asked Shikamaru who was sitting beside her.

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

"You looked like you were gonna be sick..."

"Sorry... I actually was sick for a while. I guess last night really pushed my immune system back down. Plus I'm tired..."

Sakura didn't say very much else throughout the meal and luckily everyone just thought that she was feeling under the weather. She picked at her food and avoided any of the meat as her stomach was still reeling from the alcohol. Cold water seemed to be a source of comfort, so she kept drinking as much as she could without making her stomach full. By the time everyone was done eating it looked as if she was only half done.

"Where are you off to now?" Ino asked as they were all leaving the restaurant.

"I'm going to go home. Still feeling sick," replied Sakura. "You?"

"I've got the afternoon shift at the shop, so I need to start heading over there already."

As everyone said their goodbyes Sakura did her best to smile. She did her waves and said her farewells. When the last pair of eyes had taken themselves off of her, only then could she really put on the face that she had been carrying deep inside. It was an expression of despair and loss. Every crease in her face seemed to turn downward like a frown and every fiber of her body felt like breaking apart into tiny pieces. It was nothing less than a most dreadful feeling, and it was to a degree that she had never felt before.

Sakura walked through the streets in a daze. Her hands were in her pockets again and her footsteps were heavy. She continued to trudge along when suddenly she stopped.

_What the hell am I doing?... _she thought. _I need to get over this stupid thing and show him that I don't need him!_

The confidence in Sakura lasted for about five seconds before she slumped back down in depression. After all, the fact that she had just gotten a hole blown right through the center of her heart was still a vivid reality. When she was finally able to at least think of what she should do next, she decided that the best thing she could do was beat the heat.

* * *

The path leading to the training grounds were emanating waves of heat as they sat there lonely without a footstep to cool them. Surrounded by trees on either side, the dust that blew up with the occasional breeze seemed to dissuade anyone from going near them. As the color of the dirt glowed with a blinding reflection of the sun it looked as if the road would remain empty until a tinge of pink peeked through the trees.

Walking just behind the row of trees closest to the road was Sakura. Her pink hair was covered with a broad-rimmed straw hat as she lugged a matching tote bag. She wore a white sundress that came just above her knees and a pair of worn-out looking sandals that had been with her through many years. In effort to keep as cool as possible she avoided being too close to the path that dared to cook her legs with a bit of her salty sweat. Every now and again she'd venture close to peek up and down the path to see if anyone was coming, only to find that she was in fact still alone, and that is how she wanted it.

The training grounds were off-limits to anyone looking to shoot the breeze, but being that Sakura was in a hermit-like state she didn't want to visit the same watering holes that everyone else was at. So, she opted to visit one of the many waterfalls that dotted the training grounds instead. On days like this when the very air seemed to choke the life out of you with its sheer heat, even the sensei training their students were reluctant to go near them. Perhaps Gai and Lee would but they tended to stick to the far end of the grounds. Thinking that it was a darn shame to let those pools of water go vacant, Sakura reasoned that no one would complain if there was no one there to see her. Besides, if she got caught then she could just say that she was training.

Sakura waited for a moment in the shadows of the trees before darting through the opening in the fence. Once she was on the other side she leisurely made her way through the brush before finally making it to the center of the training grounds. Looking out into the open field there was no one in sight. The sound of clashing kunai was absent as the wind kicked the leaves through the empty space. When she was sure that it was clear, only then did Sakura cross into the open and move over to the next batch of trees.

The shade from the trees afforded a bit of relief from the harsh views of the sun, but every time a ray of light peeked through the branches it felt as if it was scalding Sakura. Occasionally the wind would blow through her area and add to her comfort but it was always short-lived, and by the time the sound of the waterfall ahead came within earshot Sakura was almost dead from the heat.

"Finally..." she whispered once she broke through the trees.

Before Sakura stood a tall but skinny waterfall. The sound of its hum wasn't too loud nor too soft to be displeasing, and just as she had suspected, no soul seemed to be near her vicinity as she climbed down to the banks of the waterfall's pool. Putting down her mat she studied the scars on the surrounding trees that were undoubtedly made from shuriken and other weapons. She made her way over to one in particular and found that it still had small traces of blood.

_I hope there aren't any leftover shuriken at the bottom... _thought Sakura as she looked over to the glassy surface of the pool. _I know they clean it out after each training session... but still..._

Sakura slipped off her dress and kicked off her sandals. Sporting a pink bikini she tip-toed to the water's edge to put her toes in for a test. The water's cool touch sent a shocking sensation up to her tummy that made her wrap her arms around them. It seemed that the sun had made her so hot that the tiniest touch of cold was amplified to an icy degree. When she got the nerve to step in completely, she held her breath and did a shallow dive into the pool.

Diving down to the bottom Sakura opened her eyes beneath the water. Her eyes tried to look for any glimpses of silver flashing in the sunlight. Each time she did she brought her face inches from it to see if it was a weapon. She did this in about five breaths until she was sure that all weapons were cleared away.

_I hope that's it..._ thought Sakura as she plopped the last two shuriken down into a pile.

Sakura put her feet upon a smooth rock and pushed off backwards into the center of the pool. She glided like a fish until opening into a star. Shutting her eyes, Sakura let the hot sun warm the top of her body as she was iced from beneath. She felt her limbs relax and took a deep breath to try and loosen up her shoulders but the stress proved to be too stubborn to leave them. Every now and again she would kick back upstream when she thought she had drifted too far, but never once did she open her eyes to check just how much.

The world seemed to quiet itself beneath the sound of the rushing waterfall. The whitewash of the rapids tingled Sakura's skin and drowned out any thoughts of reality. The lightness of her floating there made her feel like she was drifting into heaven. Imagining that she was being surrounded by a its light, Sakura let every part of her body drift anywhere that it wanted to go. The pure bliss of such an atmosphere rocked her into a half-dreaming state. She could still feel the now cool tinge of the water's embrace, but her mind was asleep to the rest of the world. Everything had become so blurred that she did not even notice a tiny shadow passing overhead.

An eery feeling crept into Sakura's stomach a few seconds after the shadow had passed and instinctively she opened her eyes and sat up. Searching the area around her she now knew that she wasn't alone, and picking a stone from the bottom of the basin she stood up and threw it fiercely into the trees.

"Sukebe..." she said.

A moment had passed and Sakura stared into the branches with a look of daring. At first she wasn't sure if the person would show themselves, but soon she found herself breathless when a familiar figure made its way out from the trees.

"Sa...Sasuke!" she yelled in surprise and dropped her body beneath the water's surface. "What are you doing here?"

"Training... Did you become a rule-breaker while I was gone?"

"Na-nani? ... No... I'm ... clearing the pool of lost weapons..." Sakura stammered as she pointed to the pile of shuriken.

Sasuke remained silent as he kept his eyes on Sakura. His face was as expressionless as ever but there was something in his eyes that made her uncomfortable, and she felt as if she was being made transparent by his Sharingan.

"Why are you staring?..." she whispered and pulled back.

Though it was much like Sasuke not to say much, it was strange that he lingered there in front of her. Normally he would have just walked away.

"Anyone else with you?" she finally asked.

Sasuke shook his head. "You?"

Sakura shook her head too.

Another awkward silence passed between the two as a soft breeze rustled the trees surrounding them. They just stayed there staring at one another lost in thoughts that questioned what the other was thinking. When Sakura thought that she could take it no further she decided to cut the silence in two.

"What?" she said.

"Nothing... I've just never known anyone to clean the waters of the training grounds in a bikini with a picnic mat spread out nearby..."

Sakura blushed heavily heating the waters around her. Trying to think of something to take Sasuke's attention away from her misbehavior, she immediately took the opportunity to keep him in her presence.

"You hungry?" she asked, just as Sasuke thought about walking away.

Sasuke looked over to her bag and noticed a flowery piece of material sticking out. She definitely had a bento in tow. Nodding to her, he waited for an official invite.

"If you pass me a towel, I have enough food for more than two..."

Sakura watched anxiously as Sasuke walked slowly over to the mat to pick up her towel. He threw it at her in a swift manner so that she could catch it before it struck the water. Carefully she walked out of the pool so as not to slip and wrapped herself as soon as she had the chance. Taking the moment to brush her wet hair out of her face, Sakura then moved to the mat and crouched down to open her bag.

"I have a lot..." began Sakura. "I was planning to stay here until the sun went down..."

Sasuke watched Sakura's small hands carefully lift out a huge jug of iced barley tea before pulling out a triple stacked lacquer box tied with a colorful furoshiki. Not surprisingly, the furoshiki had tiny sakura patterns while the box was adorned with the different orange hues of autumn leaves. The lid to the box was opened and a neatly packed row of tamagoyaki was revealed with tiny sausages that resembled tiny tako. There were cherry tomatoes and takuan dividing everything from one another.

The middle layer revealed four rows of onigiri stuffed with four different fillings, and Sasuke's eyes immediately fell to the one with a bit of salted salmon flakes marking the top. Out of all of the things that an onigiri could be filled with, that was his favorite, and as he drooled over this fact the third layer was uncovered revealing kamaboko and chicken karaage. The breeze instantly wafted the smell of the chicken into Sasuke's nostrils and though he didn't show it, his heart had in that moment jumped with excitement. He could tell just by looking at the outer batter of the karaage that it was fried to perfection. It seemed that every tray that was being opened seem to have something better than the first, and he wondered if Sakura had intended for it to be that way. Before he even knew it, he and Sakura were sitting down in the shade of the trees with a beautiful feast spread out before them.

The sound of the waterfall was the only thing that cut the air between Sasuke and Sakura as they shared a meal. Even though Sakura had originally been avoiding him, being in Sasuke's presence had somehow brought a calming affect to her nerves. It almost felt as if their spirits had blurred into nature itself, and everything around them had become unconsciously one. There was something about the fact that Sasuke never said much that made it acceptable to have him around during what was becoming a trying period in her life. Of all the people living at that moment, Sakura least expected him to be the one allowed into her world.

"Arigatou..." said Sasuke as he was handed another onigiri filled with salted salmon flakes.

Sakura smiled and continued to eat. Everything just seemed so peaceful at the moment. All worries and grief had melted away in the face of the waterfall, but just as she knew it, thoughts of Kakashi couldn't be kept out forever.

Sakura's eyes slowly seeped into the emptiness as she began to recall what she had tried so hard to forget. She unknowingly put down her left hand in her lap, a half-eaten onigiri resting in it while her right hand lightly grasped her chopsticks. Her line of sight drifted downward in thought and she forgot that Sasuke was even there. She didn't even realize that he too had stopped eating and began to stare at her sad features.

"Gomenasai..." said Sasuke suddenly. It was the only thing he could come up with.

The sudden apology startled Sakura and she shook herself awake.

"Huh? For what?"

"For hitting you..."

"Huh? When?..."

Sasuke waited as he watched Sakura wear a look that said she was searching her memory banks. When it finally hit her, she jerked her head in surprise.

"Don't worry about it... That was so long ago," she said timidly. "I am thankful that you did. Otherwise, I wouldn't be where I am today..."

Sasuke took another bite of his onigiri and swallowed.

"You've gotten much better..." he said.

"You think so?... I certainly endured a lot to get better... but not as much as Naruto."

The sound of Naruto's name being said somehow struck Sasuke in the gut. There was still a heavy twinge of guilt that stirred inside of him for what he did to both of them. He had never liked the idea of abandoning what had become his only friends, but it was all in the past now and he couldn't take it back even if he wanted to.

"Do you hate me for it?" he said.

Sakura paused in her eating to put down her food and look at Sasuke with a smile.

"Just a bit."

Sasuke in that moment had never felt so relieved. Knowing finally that Sakura had once again accepted him, only then did he at last feel a small measure of peace. It was clear that Naruto was always going to accept him, but there was something about Sakura being mad at him that just drove him insane. It didn't matter if the rest of the world hated him as long as Sakura was okay.

Sasuke suddenly put down his onigiri and looked alarmed. Staring up towards the top of the waterfall he caught a faint smell of a person.

"Looks like we've been found..." said Sasuke.

Sakura grasped her chopsticks in preparation to dart it. Searching the area where Sasuke had first been looking, she was surprised when he spoke again.

"Hello... Kakashi..."

Sakura's shoulders did an uncontrollable tiny jump when she heard the name. She had stopped breathing completely when the sound of footsteps came up from behind them.

"As sensitive as ever, my former star student!" said Kakashi. "And oh? What do we have here? Did I intrude on a date?"

The last question infuriated Sakura and she forced herself to turn around and look directly at Kakashi.

"NO... I just happened to be clearing the pool of shuriken. Sasuke happened to be the only person willing to train on such a hot day. I was hoping that no one would be bothering me, actually."

Sasuke looked at Sakura and knew instantly that she didn't mean what she had just said. He knew that his presence didn't disturb her at all, but he thought that maybe the fact that Kakashi hinted towards this being a date was what made her so defensive.

"Gomen, gomen!" smiled Kakashi. "I didn't mean to intrude..."

"It's okay..." said Sakura. "Would you like some food? I brought plenty because I was planning to stay here the whole day."

"I thought you were just here for the cleaning..."

Sakura looked startled as she had slipped and immediately knew that Kakashi's presence was affecting her brain.

"...but I would love to have some of your cooking," finished Kakashi as he sat down between them.

Sakura broke open another pair of chopsticks and passed it to him.

"Itadakimasu!" said Kakashi as he snapped it in two.

Sakura sat there for a few moments while Kakashi and Sasuke continued to eat. After a while she couldn't stand the awkward tension filling the air so she stood up and began walking back towards the pool.

"Going to take a dip," she said as she walked away.

"Aren't you going to wait a while to digest?" Kakashi asked.

"I'll be fine..."

"What if you cramp?"

"Then I'll crawl along the bottom to get out..."

Kakashi chewed on his food as his eyes followed Sakura to the pool. When she took her towel off to hang it up on a branch he purposely looked away as he didn't want Sasuke to see him looking at her. A quick glance could not be helped though as her firm body made its way to the water's edge. Though the water was freezing, Sakura forced herself not to linger too long in the open and forced herself into the water's cold grasp.

"Sorry, but I hope I wasn't disturbing anything, was I?" Kakashi asked Sasuke.

"You weren't... I was actually making use of it being so hot to train. I figured no else would want to be here so I could practice alone..."

"I guess it turned out that my teaching has made you all think alike, because I had the same idea too..."

In truth Kakashi had actually been looking for Sakura for the past two hours. After waking up late with a hangover he went through quite a long period of having no recollection of the night before finally figuring out the reason why his heart hurt so bad. He could not remember much as to why, but when the image of Akemi kissing him eventually came to, the next thing that he remembered was a blur of pink hair. Kakashi's heart then sunk like a ship bombed at sea before rushing out the door to make amends.

Kakashi had tried to locate Sakura at her home but when he couldn't find her there he checked her usual haunts. Rushing around to find her while trying to look like he wasn't up to anything was quite hard, but her absence began to slightly panic him when Ino said that she had seen her earlier but noted that she wasn't feeling well. At that point Kakashi walked nonchalantly around the corner before summoning Pakkun.

Kakashi had told Pakkun that he was searching for Sakura because they had to report to Tsunade, but once they had reached the training grounds he was quick to dismiss him saying that he could handle the rest. He was hoping to find Sakura alone but was surprised to find that she wasn't. Seeing Sasuke sitting next to her in such a friendly manner disturbed him to his core, so it was no wonder that his first question once Sakura had left them was to ask if he was disturbing anything a second time.

"... Why are you really here, Kakashi?" asked Sasuke.

"You're right...I didn't come here to train," said Kakashi, standing up. "I came here for a dip as well. I guess my secret is out."

Kakashi kicked off his boots and began to take off his forehead protector and vest. The sudden gesture immediately caught Sakura's attention and deeply disturbed her. She couldn't help but watch in horror as Kakashi was obviously going to be making his way into the very same pool that she was now half-nakedly swimming in, and she absolutely couldn't make it obvious by running away.

Sakura's stare caught Sasuke's attention and he thought that she couldn't help but look at Kakashi. Afterall, Kakashi's sex appeal was undeniable to any man when he was wearing nothing but his signature sleeveless black shirt that fitted to every muscle on his chest and torso. When he took off his pants to reveal his virtually-fitted boxers, Sasuke noted the pinkish hue of Sakura's color-changing face.

Sasuke stood up and took off his sword. Before Sakura knew it, her eyes had transferred over to him as he was now taking off his white gi and kicking off his boots as well. The stripping of his belt made Sakura quiver and Sasuke knew this to be so. As she sat there frozen in the water, the fact that her attention had changed did not go unnoticed as Kakashi's eyebrow was now raised in alarm.

"Getting fresh, are we?" Kakashi asked Sasuke.

"No... Just refreshed."

_What the hell are they thinking!_ Sakura shouted in her head.

Shaking herself, Sakura turned and dove under the water swimming as furthest away from them as she could. She screamed under the water but silenced herself once she heard the sound of someone bombing into the pool.

_Shit! Shit! Shit! _she thought repeatedly.

Holding her breath as long as possible Sakura kept swimming and didn't stop. She was about to surface when suddenly she felt a hand wrap around her ankle and jerk her backwards. What followed next was a kick to her back as Kakashi used her as a platform to surface.

Sakura burst forth to breathe the air and glared at Kakashi's smug face.

"Ah? Gomen, gomen!" he laughed. "I thought you were a rock!"

Suddenly two dragons twisted out of the water and slammed Kakashi between them. It caught Kakashi off-guard so it sent him spiraling upwards before dropping him midair. Just as it was about to let him go he caught a glimpse of Sasuke's grin as he held his last hand sign, and Sakura watched with glee as Kakashi came splashing down right in front of her.

"Arigatou!" smiled Sakura to Sasuke.

Just as Kakashi had surfaced and tried to take a breath, Sakura used her chakura and struck the water to send a small tsunami into his face.

"So... Two against one, eh?" said Kakashi as he coughed.

The grin off of Sasuke and Sakura's faces were a clear "yes."

"Fine... I guess this is a training session afterall..."

Before anyone knew it the pool was virtually empty of water as they battled it out, something that often happened during training and just took a few hours to refill. At one point Sakura's bikini nearly got blasted off by Kakashi but the shock of seeing her cling to her straps was just long enough to let her get a little revenge in. Though Sakura was still teamed up with Sasuke, that didn't stop Sasuke from getting in a few near-misses of waterspouts that almost undid her straps entirely. It seemed that Sakura was now caught in a tug-of-war between the two men and she didn't even know it. Each move and each technique had now turned into a chance to outdo the other and win Sakura's attention, and by the time the three of them walked down the dirt path back towards the village, Kakashi and Sasuke had unconsciously become _rivals_.

* * *

_**Author's note - I was in the middle of fixing this chapter to replace the first version I uploaded when my computer froze, so even though I fixed most of my mistakes (for example, an entire paragraph was missing. wtf!), I had gone back to do it again in a very half-hearted and tired manner. Currently I am at the brink of a panic attack because of work so I just don't have the strength. More to come... Thanks for reading, and review! Review! Review please! Don't know if I SUCK unless you tell me. Criticism is ALWAYS welcome (helps me grow). Thanks again... - IloveNeji44 :3 _


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